^  .  fo  .o^ 


'^  PRINCETON,  N.  J.  *jjf 


Presented    byVV(£,S\CA(Sr\\-    V?A\\or^. 


Division  ■■ 


Section 


STXJDIEXS 


IN 


MARK'S    GOSPEL 


BY 


nEV.  CIIART^KS    S.  ROBINSON,  D.  D. 


AMERICyiN  TRACT  SOCIETY, 

150   NASSAU    STREET,    NEW   YORK. 


COPYRIGHT,  1888, 
BY  AMERICAN  TRACT  SOCIETY. 


CONTENTS. 


I.   BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  GOSPEL 7 

II.    THE  FORERUNNER  OF  JESUS iS 

III.  A  DAY'S  WORK  IN  CAPERNAUM 27 

IV.  HEALING  A  PARABLE  OF  PARDON 40 

V.    REASONS  IN  RESERVE 51 

VI.    HEEDFUL  HEARING S9 

VII.    THE  HOME  MISSION 72 

VIIL   "WHO  TOUCHED  ME?" 82 

IX.    HOW  TO  MAKE  MEN  REPENT 95 

X.   TAKING  UP  ONE'S  CROSS 104 

XI.   A  CHILD  FOR  A  TEXT ^— _  in 

XII.   STUMBLING-STONES  AND  MILL-STONES  .— 124 

XIII.  CHILDREN  IN  HEAVEN 134 

XIV.  A  DEFECTIVE  CHARACTER  143 

XV.   STIFLED  CONVICTIONS 154 

XVI.   THE  SIGHTLESS  SINNER,  BARTIMEUS 1C7 

XVII.    CHRIST  ENTERING  JERUSALEM 176 

XVIII.    "THE  HEAD  OF  THE  CORNER" 1S7 

XIX.    THE  GREAT  COMMANDMENT 2or 


4  CONTENTS. 

XX.  TROUBLE  JUST  AHEAD 212 

XXI.  OUR  ABSENT  LORD 21S 

XXIL  A  WOMAN'S  MEMORL\L 230 

XXIIL  SACRAMENTS  IN  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT 2^0 

XXIV.  A  TRAITOR'S  KISS  IN  GETHSEMANE 250 

XXV.  MISUNDERSTOOD  TO  THE  END 258 

XXVI.  CHRIST'S  KINGSHIP  AND  KINGDOM 269 

XXVII.  THE  SCENE  AT  CALVARY 2S1 

XXVIII.  LESSONS  AT  THE  SEPULCHRE 2S9 


PREFACE 


These  Studies  had  their  place  in  the  regular 
utterances  of  pulpit  duty  from  Sabbath  to  Sabbath. 
They  follow  the  gospel  history  and  doctrine  in 
orderly  progress  through  the  narrative  of  the  evan- 
gelist Mark,  taking  up  consecutive  passages  with 
the  harmony  of  the  others. 

In  character  they  are  meant  to  be  plain  exposi- 
tory sermons,  with  illustrations  and  enforcements 
joined  easily  together.  It  is  in  this  one  particular 
that  my  hopes  of  their  usefulness  are  centred. 

Two  dear  friends  have  aided  me  in  the  drudgery 
of  mechanical  preparation.  I  hope  the  little  vol- 
ume will  serve  to  us  all  as  a  memorial  of  the  sum- 
mer their  help  has  enlivened. 

CHARLES  SEYMOUR  ROBINSON. 


New  York,  57  East  Fifty-fourth  Street, 
September  15,  1S88. 


STUDIES    IN 

MARK'S    GOSPEL. 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  GOSPEIy. 

"  The  beginning  of  the  gospkl  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  op 
God." — Mark  i:i. 

It  lias  been  remarked  that,  over  and  above  all 
the  others,  Mark  is  the  evangelist  of  rapidity  in 
action.  He  gives  us  fewer  of  the  great  incidents 
in  our  Lord's  career  which  w^e  meet  elsewhere; 
but  he  furnishes  more  of  the  minor  and  pictu- 
resque particulars  of  such  as  he  does  introduce. 
Two  expressions  there  are  which  he  uses  again 
and  again  until  they  may  be  recognized  as  signs  of 
his  style. 

One  of  these  is  the  word  "immediately,'*  some- 
times in  our  version  rendered  '* straightway,"  and 
sometimes  "forthwith."  This  appears  in  Mark's 
short  sixteen  chapters  over  forty  times;  about  as 
many  times  as  it  can  be  found  in  all  the  rest  of  the 
New  Testament. 

How  swiftly  this  evangelist  advances  may  be 
seen  in  the  opening  of  his  story.  In  the  first 
twenty  verses  we  have  the  account  of  Malachi's 
prediction    of  the   IMcssiah's  advent    and   Isaiah's 


8 

prophecy  of  liis  forerunner  John  the  Baptist's 
preaching,  Jesus'  baptism  in  the  Jordan,  and  his 
forty  days'  temptation  in  the  wilderness  by  the 
devil.  Before  we  are  really  aware  of  it,  the  per- 
sons of  the  grand  drama  of  the  gospel  narrative 
are  sweeping  along  before  us:  John  is  making  the 
nation  shake  under  his  denunciations;  Immanuel 
and  Satan  are  in  the  thick  of  the  conflict  which 
is  to  end  only  at  the  final  judgment.  We  grow 
breathless  with  the  haste  of  the  history. 

The  other  characteristic  form  of  expression  in 
Mark's  gospel  is  offered  us  in  the  text.  The  first 
sentence  in  this  book  is  the  title  to  the  whole  of  it: 
"The  beginning  of  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ,  the 
Son  of  God,"  This  evangelist  uses  the  word 
''  began"  over  and  over  again,  a  score  of  times  at 
least,  where  no  one  else  would  think  of  employing 
it.  When  Jesus  was  gathering  multitudes  at  the 
seaside,  Mark  says  "he  began  to  teach."  When 
he  had  permitted  the  devils  to  enter  the  herd  of 
swine,  Mark  says  the  terrified  inhabitants  "began 
to  pray  him  to  depart."  When  the  leper  was 
healed  he  "began  to  publish"  the  miracle.  Our 
Lord  "began  to  send  out"  the  disciples.  When 
Jesus  was  before  the  council  the  servants  **  began 
to"  mock  him;  when  he  came  forth  on  the  way  to 
the  cross  the  soldiers  "began  to"  spit  upon  him. 
Thus  the  tale  is  just  full  of  beginnings  from  the 
first  sentence  to  the  close. 

Let  us  fasten  our  attention  for  a  little  while 
upon  the  earliest  and  chief  of  all  these  beginnings, 
"the  beginning  of  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ,  the 


BEGINNINGS  OF  THE   GOSrEI..  9 

Son  of  God."  It  does  not  seem  right  to  pass  over 
this  expression  lightly,  as  if  all  that  Mark  meant 
by  it  was  to  get  a  start  somehow  in  llis  composition. 
The  gospel  has  had  at  least  three  beginnings,  and 
we  feel  that  the  evangelist  must  have  designed  to 
make  some  sort  of  reference  to  them  all  when  he 
chose  such  a  title. 

I.  It  began  first  in  the  purpose  of  the  Almighty 
Father.  There  was  certainly  a  plan  of  redemption 
before  any  man  was  redeemed.  The  Omniscient 
One  foresaw  what  he  was  going  to  do.  ' '  Known 
unto  God  are  all  his  works  from  the  beginning  of 
the  world."  There  was  an  *'  eternal  purpose  which 
he  purposed  in  Christ  Jesus  our  Ivord." 

There  is  need  that  we  go  further  back  than  sim- 
ple prophecy  in  the  Old  Testament.  Observe  here 
how  pertinently  Mark  quotes  two  of  the  seers  who 
foretold  these  grand  events:  "As  it  is  written  in 
the  prophets,  Behold,  I  send  my  messenger  before 
thy  face,  which  shall  prepare  thy  way  before  thee; 
the  voice  of  one  crying  in  the  wilderness.  Prepare 
ye  the  way  of  the  Lord,  make  his  paths  straight." 

We  cannot  help  believing  that  this  evangelist 
knew  in  the  outset  what  wonderful  matters  he  had 
to  record.  For  here,  all  driven  up  compactly 
together,  is  found  the  finest  group  of  "first  things" 
in  the  New  Testament:  the  first  sermon  on  repent- 
ance, the  first  baptism  of  a  convert,  the  first  sensi- 
ble manifestation  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  first  voice 
from  heaven  in  recognition  of  Jesus*  office  and 
glory,  the  first  fight  with  Beelzebub,  and  the  first 
victory  over  temptation.     This  did  not  hapj^en  so; 


lO 

it  must  have  been  ordered  so.  This  would  be 
taught  from  the  prophets. 

Still  there  is  need  of  our  going  back  beyond 
the  prophets.  The  Jewish  rabbis  have  fabled  that 
when  Bve  left  Paradise  she  concealed  just  one 
flower  upon  her  person,  the  sign  of  a  promise  of 
divine  grace  in  the  pardon  of  the  human  race.  But 
this  was  not  the  earliest  beginning  of  the  gospel. 

We  read  in  the  opening  verses  of  the  last  chap- 
ter in  the  Bible  this:  "And  he  showed  me  a  pure 
river  of  water  of  life,  clear  as  crystal,  proceeding 
out  of  the  throne  of  God  and  of  the  Lamb.  In  the 
midst  of  the  street  of  it,  and  on  either  side  of  the 
river,  was  there  the  tree  of  life,  which  bare  twelve 
manner  of  fruits,  and  yielded  her  fruit  every  month ; 
and  the  leaves  of  the  tree  were  for  the  healing  of 
the  nations. '^  Most  interpreters  agree  that  this 
"water  of  life"  signifies  the  gospel  of  Jesus,  the 
Son  of  God.  The  most  suggestive  matter  of  notice 
in  the  description  is  what  is  here  said  concerning 
the  origin  of  the  stream.  Our  springs  are  in  God. 
This  river  may  be  traced  all  along,  among  the  fruit- 
ful trees  and  the  singing  angels  upon  its  margin; 
and  in  the  end  it  will  be  found  to  issue  from  be- 
neath ' '  the  throne  of  God  and  the  Lamb. " 

We  are  reminded  at  once  of  that  passage  in 
Bzekiel's  prophecy,  which  every  expositor  pro- 
nounces at  once  the  most  brilliant  and  perhaps  the 
most  obscure  in  the  Bible.  This  verse  in  the  book 
of  Revelation  explains  it;  and  we  learn  that  when 
the  angel  conducted  Ezekiel  to  the  top  of  the 
mountain,  it  was  that  he  might  see  far  away  in  his 


BEGINNINGS  OF   TIIK   GOSPEL.  II 

beautiful  visions  the  glory  of  the  latter  day.  It 
was  a  familiar  figure  the  prophet  employed.  A 
fountain  opened  in  Israel  for  the  cleansing  away  of 
sin  is  what  he  saw.  *' Afterward  he  brought  me 
again  unto  the  door  of  the  house ;  and  behold, 
waters  issued  out  from  under  the  threshold  of  the 
house  eastward;  for  the  forefront  of  the  house  stood 
toward  the  east,  and  the  waters  came  down  from 
under  from  the  right  side  of  the  house,  at  the  south 
side  of  the  altar.  Then  brought  he  me  out  of  the 
way  of  the  gate  northward,  and  led  me  about  the 
way  without  unto  the  utter  gate  by  the  way  that 
looketh  eastward ;  and  behold,  there  ran  out  waters 
on  the  right  side. ' ' 

Here,  then,  we  begin:  the  gospel  has  Its  origin 
in  the  very  palace  of  God;  the  river  starts  from 
under  the  altar  of  sacrifice,  where  atonement  is 
made.  Next,  the  rapid  growth  of  the  gospel  is 
figured  in  the  rising  of  the  stream:  "And  when 
the  man  that  had  the  line  in  his  hand  went  forth 
eastward,  he  measured  a  thousand  cubits,  and  he 
brought  me  through  the  waters;  and  the  waters  were 
to  the  ankles.  Again  he  measured  a  thousand,  and 
brought  me  through  the  waters;  the  waters  were  to 
the  knees.  Again  he  measured  a  thousand,  and 
brought  me  through;  the  waters  were  to  the  loins. 
Afterward  he  measured  a  thousand;  and  it  was  a 
river  that  I  could  not  pass  over:  for  the  waters  were 
risen,  waters  to  swim  in,  a  river  that  could  not  be 
passed  over." 

Thus  the  gospel  river  rolls  along,  growing  volu- 
minous  and  irresistible  as  the  aires  succeed  each 


12  STUDIES    IN    mark's   GOSPKL. 

Other.  And  all  its  aims  are  beneficial;  it  flows  to 
beautify,  to  refresh,  never  to  destroy:  "And  he  said 
unto  me,  Son  of  man,  hast  thou  seen  this?  Then 
he  brought  me,  and  caused  me  to  return  to  the 
brink  of  the  river.  Now,  when  I  had  returned, 
behold,  at  the  bank  of  the  river  were  very  many 
trees  on  the  one  side  and  on  the  other.  Then  said 
he  unto  me.  These  waters  issue  out  toward  the 
east  country,  and  go  down  into  the  desert,  and  go 
into  the  sea:  which  being  brought  forth  into  the 
sea,  the  waters  shall  be  healed.  And  it  shall  come 
to  pass  that  everything  that  liveth,  which  moveth, 
whithersoever  the  rivers  shall  come,  shall  live:  and 
there  shall  be  a  very  great  multitude  of  fish,  be- 
cause these  waters  shall  come  thither:  for  they 
shall  be  healed;  and  everything  shall  live  whither 
the  river  cometh.  And  by  the  river  upon  the  bank 
thereof,  on  this  side  and  on  that  side,  shall  grow  all 
trees  for  meat,  whose  leaf  shall  not  fade,  neither 
shall  the  fruit  thereof  be  consumed:  it  shall  bring 
forth  new  fruit  according  to  his  months,  because 
their  w^aters  they  issued  out  of  the  sanctuary:  and 
the  fruit  thereof  shall  be  for  meat,  and  the  leaf 
thereof  for  medicine." 

II.  The  gospel  had  a  second  beginning  in  the 
advent  of  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  This  w^as  to 
the  first  beginning  as  the  flower  is  to  the  seed.  We 
see  how  this'  evangelist  Mark  teaches  such  a  truth 
by  his  account  of  the  obedience  Jesus  rendered,  and 
the  testimony  John  gave  to  him  as  the  I^amb  of 
God,  taking  away  the  sins  of  the  world. 

All  of  the  modern  commentators  call  attention 


BEGINNINGS  OF   TlIi;   GOSPEL.  I3 

to  the  fact  that  Mark  gives  us  glimpses  of  our 
Lord's  person  more  often  than  any  one  of  the  other 
writers.  He  describes  Jesus'  looks  and  gestures. 
He  repeats  the  vernacular  words  he  used  in  those 
moments  of  supreme  emotion  when  he  fell  back 
upon  his  mother  tongue.  It  is  IMark  who  quotes 
the  Talitha-cuiiii  in  the  miracle,  the  Corban  in  the 
discourse,  the  EpJipJiatha  in  the  sigh  to  heaven,  and 
the  Eloi^  Eloi  on  the  cross.  Thus  he  makes  us  see 
the  Master  as  he  moves  around  in  his  labors  and  is 
worried  with  his  cares.  So  as  the  original  purpose 
v/as  lodged  in  the  bosom  of  the  Father  for  one 
beginning,  here  in  the  actual  embodiment  of  the 
gospel  in  Jesus'  life  is  another. 

It  is  very  striking,  and  often  pathetic,  to  notice 
how  the  views  of  the  common  people  seize  upon 
and  really  enjoy  the  forms  of  speech  in  which  this 
personal  Saviour  of  ours  preached  the  gospel.  The 
English  critic,  Ruskin,  tells  us  in  the  "Modern 
Painters"  that  once,  when  he  was  coming  down 
from  the  rocks  in  the  neighborhood  of  Montreux 
in  Switzerland,  both  weary  and  thirsty,  he  found 
at  the  turn  of  the  path  a  spring,  conducted  as  usual 
by  the  herdsmen  into  a  hollowed  pine-trunk.  He 
stooped  to  it,  and  drank  deeply;  and  then  as  he 
raised  his  head,  drawing  in  his  breath  heavily  with 
a  sigh  of  full  satisfaction,  some  one  behind  him, 
unseen  hitherto,  spoke  in  the  words  of  the  beautiful 
French  version  of  John's  gospel,  ^'' Cehd  qui  boira 
de  cette  eau-ci^  aura  eficore  soif:''^  —  ''Whosoever 
drinketh  of  this  water,  shall  thirst  again."  He 
says  that  at  first  he  did  not  comprehend  the  mean- 


14  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPEL. 

iiig  of  the  singular  sentence;  he  looked  up,  and  saw 
the  friendly  countenance  of  a  plain,  frank  moun- 
taineer, who  without  the  least  embarrassment  went 
on  with  the  verse,  ''''Mais  celui  qui  boira  de  V eau 
qiieje  lui  donnerai^  iC  aiLva  jamais  soif^ — *'  But  who- 
soever drinketh  of  the  water  that  I  shall  give  him 
shall  never  thirst. ' ' 

Oh,  how  little  we  think  concerning  the  wonder- 
ful privileges  we  enjoy  in  this  age  of  ours,  and  in 
this  land  of  light!  Christ  has  come!  The  gospel 
has  had  its  fresh  beginning  in  him.  Those  must 
have  been  sad  days  when  God's  plan  for  human 
redemption  was  known  only  through  signs  and 
symbols.  It  seems  affecting  to  an  imaginative  and 
generous  mind  to  think  even  of  those  unreckoned 
ages  of  primeval  history,  before  the  discovery  of 
such  a  vision  of  landscape  beauty  as  the  Yosemite 
Valley,  for  example,  or  the  Falls  of  Niagara.  We 
fancy  the  sweet  sunshine  for  years  falling  over 
Cathedral  Mountain,  the  majestic  music  of  the  sol- 
emn cataract  echoing  through  the  forests  before  the 
ship  of  Columbus  set  sail;  and  we  feel  that  the  gen- 
erations of  men  lost  much  who  never  set  eyes  upon 
such  beauty,  who  never  heard  such  voices  of  God 
in  the  waters.  Those  old  years  seem  melancholy 
under  the  waste  of  earth's  best  beauty. 

III.  In  the  third  place,  the  gospel  had  a  begin- 
ning in  the  work  of  the  Holy  Ghost  upon  the  hearts 
of  men.  Even  Mark  shows  this  clearly  in  the  story 
he  gives  of  the  descent  of  the  dove  upon  the  head 
of  Christ  as  he  comes  up  from  the  Jordan,  and  by 
the  use  of  the  enertjetic  word  "drive''  when  de- 


BEGINNINGS   OF   THE   GOSPEL.  15 

scribing  the  urgency  with  which  our  pattern  Lord 
was  constrained  to  endure  the  temptation.  The 
good  news  of  perfected  salvation  began  to  be  told  in 
the  moment  when  Satan  received  his  defeat.  It 
was  the  Spirit  of  God  which  here  brought  on  the 
conflict,  and  crowned  the  victor  with  success. 

Now  it  is  at  this  special  point  in  all  the  sacred 
story  that  the  admonition  reaches  us.  The  question 
above  all  others  for  us  to  ask  and  to  answer  is, 
How  does  the  work  of  the  Holy  Ghost  effect  "the 
beginning  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of 
God,"  in  the  soul  of  an  unregenerate  man  ? 

The  reply  to  it  is  not  difficult.  "There  are 
diversities  of  gifts,  but  the  same  Spirit:  and  there 
are  diversities  of  operations,  but  it  is  the  same  God 
which  worketh  all  in  all." 

Sometimes  by  a  strange  disturbance,  he  sover- 
eignly works  uneasiness  and  discontent  in  the  con- 
science. The  sinner  does  not  know,  perhaps,  the 
cause  of  his  restlessness,  but  he  becomes  sure  that 
his  peace  is  not  made,  and  that  it  ought  to  be  made 
with  an  offended  God.  We  ought  to  recognize  the 
working  of  our  Helper,  and  be  grateful  that  he  stirs 
us  up  into  dissatisfaction  with  our  present  self.  It 
is  a  fact  that  religious  convictions,  which  lead  to 
penitence  and  set  us  to  ask  for  pardon,  are  among 
the  best  gifts  of  heaven.  There  is  wisdom  in  the 
words,  and  force  in  the  figure,  of  devout  Gurnall  : 
"  It  is  a  greater  mercy,"  says  he,  "  to  give  the  first 
grace  of  conversion  than  to  crown  that  with  glor}-. 
It  is  more  condescension  in  a  prince  to  marry  a 
poor  damsel,  than  having  married  her  to  clothe  her 


l6  STUDIES  IN   mark's  GOSPEL. 

like  a  princess.  He  was  free  to  do  tlie  first,  or  not; 
but  his  relation  to  her  afterward  pleads  strongly 
for  the  other.** 

Sometimes,  also,  the  Holy  Spirit  begins  the  gos- 
pel work  in  the  heart  by  the  quiet  and  persistent 
communication  of  truth.  By  the  slower  processes 
of  a  patient  education  a  child  is  led  on  up  into  the 
knowledge  of  God.  Then  the  Spirit  of  God  moves 
that  awakened  life  on  to  a  farther  step,  and  unites 
it  almost  without  its  own  startled  consciousness  sav- 
ingly to  Jesus  Christ  as  the  Redeemer.  And  all 
the  new  heait  can  say  is,  "One  thing  I  know; 
whereas  I  once  was  blind,  now  I  see."  From  this 
beginning  the  advance  is  sure  to  every  believing 
soul.  For  we  are  "confident  of  this  very  thing, 
that  he  which  hath  begun  a  good  work"  in  us 
*'  will  perform  it  until  the  day  of  Jesus  Christ." 

Sometimes  this  same  divine  A^rent  of  reo^enera- 
lion  employs  for  our  awakening  the  dispensations 
of  providence,  prosperous  or  adverse.  Some  extra- 
ordinary benediction  of  love  and  peace  comes  to  us 
in  the  midst  of  our  toiling  and  our  hurry.  Or  a 
sharp  bereavement  makes  a  careless  man  thought- 
ful; the  sudden  defection  of  a  friend  breaks  the 
power  of  the  world  over  him.  Then  at  last  even 
the  old  miser  in  "Pilgrim's  Progress"  must  look 
up  from  his  muck-rake,  and  now  at  once  he  catches 
a  glimpse  of  the  crown  in  the  air.  Thus  the  gospel 
begins:  now  if  the  work  be  followed,  the  soul  has 
its  fair  chance  to  be  saved. 

Thus  I  reach  the  conclusion  to  which  we  have 
all  along  been  working  our   way.     In  the   copy- 


BEGINNINGS  Ol"   TllE   GOSPEL.  1 7 

books  of  the  Latin  schools  we  were  long  ago 
taught  to  write  the  motto,  ^^  Quodcunqiic  agis^  respice 
finem  ;'^^  whatever  you  do,  respect  the  end. 

"  Beginnings  are  alike — 't  is  ends  that  difTer ; 
One  drop  falls,  lasts,  and  dries  up — but  a  drop; 
Another  begirs  a  river." 

Cherish  your  religious  convictions.  Let  them 
bear  you  steadily  forward  in  the  service  of  God's 
truth.  Keep  committing  yourself  more  and  more. 
It  will  matter  very  little  to  you,  a  hundred  years 
hence,  what  your  earthly  lot  has  been.  "  Only  let 
your  conversation  be  as  it  becometh  the  gospel  of 
Christ." 

For  remember:  when  once  this  "gospel  of  Jesus 
Christ,  the  Son  of  God,"  has  had  its  true  beginning 
in  any  genuine  experience,  and  has  been  sustained 
and  nurtured  in  an  energetic  life,  no  violence  can 
avail  to  take  away  its  priceless  privilege,  no  humil- 
iation of  outward  degradation  can  make  it  ashamed. 
Christian  manhood  begins  as  knighthood  does,  with 
a  sovereign's  sword-stroke  while  the  subject  is  on 
his  knees.  After  that,  the  soul  is  noble,  and  re- 
mains out  of  reach  of  hatred. 

"Jerome  Savonarola,  I  separate  thee  from  the 
church  militant  and  the  church  triumphant,"  said 
the  papal  legate  to  the  Italian  reformer,  while  lie 
stood  upon  the  scaffold  awaiting  martyrdom.  Sol- 
emn and  slow  came  the  answer,  "  From  the  church 
militant  you  may  divide  me;  but  from  the  church 
triumphant — no!  that  is  above  your  power!" 


l8  STUDIl^S    IN   mark's   GOSPaI.. 

II. 

THE  FORERUNNER  OP  JESUS. 

"  Behold,  I  send  my  messenger  before  thy  face,  which  shall 

PREPARE  THY  WAY  BEFORE  THEE." — 3Iark  I  :  2. 

When  John  the  Baptist  came  upon  the  stage  of 
human  life  as  an  acknowledged  forerunner  of  the 
Jewish  Messiah,  his  career  began  to  challenge  the 
usual  estimate  and  criticism  of  those  who  hurried 
down  to  the  Jordan  to  hear  him  preach.  People 
formed  very  characteristic,  but  very  widely  differing 
opinions  of  him.  On  one  occasion  an  opportunity 
occurred  for  a  declaration  to  be  made  by  no  less  a 
person  than  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

He  commented  for  a  little  upon  the  mistakes  of 
some  who  asserted  they  had  been  disappointed  in 
this  strange  creature's  looks,  his  speech,  and  gen- 
eral presentation  of  himself.  At  the  same  moment, 
he  pressed  them  with  the  folly  of  the  preconceived 
notions  they  had  of  him. 

"And  as  they  departed,  Jesus  began  to  say  unto 
the  multitudes  concerning  John,  What  went  ye  out 
into  the  wilderness  to  see?  A  reed  shaken  with  the 
wind?  But  what  went  ye  out  for  to  see?  A  man 
clothed  in  soft  raiment?  Behold,  they  that  wear 
soft  clothing  are  in  kings'  houses.  But  what  went 
ye  out  for  to  see?  A  prophet?  Yea,  I  say  unto 
you,  and  more  than  a  prophet.  For  this  is  he  of 
whom  it  is  written,  Behold,  I  send  my  messenger 


TIIIC    FORKRUNNKR   OF  JKSUS.  19 

before  thy  face,  wliicli  shall  prepare  thy  way  before 
thee." 

I.  It  will  be  well  for  us,  in  the  outset  of  our 
study,  to  inquire  concerning  the  exact  significance 
of  the  figure  here  employed. 

1.  "A  reed  shaken  by  the  wind  "  can  easily  be 
seen  anywhere  in  Palestine  without  the  trouble  of 
going  out  into  the  wilderness.  What  are  called 
rccds  are  not  the  same  in  species  as  the  plants  in  our 
southern  country  that  we  call  canes ;  and  yet  they 
resemble  them  somewhat.  The  reeds  in  the  Jordan 
valley  are  woody  and  arundinaceous  shrubs,  grow- 
ing generally  a  little  higher  than  a  man's  head. 
There  are  two  kinds  of  tliese  among  the  com.mon 
thickets;  from  one  of  them  the  better  reed-pens  are 
usually  made  for  the  native  scribes,  though  pens 
fashioned  from  the  other  can  be  found.  It  would 
not  be  accurate  to  say  reeds  grow  wherever  water  is 
found;  they  the  rather  seem  to  establish  themselves 
in  permanent  patches,  commonly  in  moist  places, 
however,  where  they  are  able  to  endure  the  chances 
of  a  dry  winter  with  safety. 

2.  The  ordinary  interpretation  of  this  expression, 
*'a  reed  shaken  with  the  wind,"  has  been  this: 
**  Did  you  suppose  that  John  was  a  mere  courtier, 
one  of  the  weaklings  of  this  trimming  world  ?  Did 
you  expect  to  fi.nd  him  in  sumptuous  attire,  his  soft 
robes  floating  in  the  cool  breezes  by  the  stream? 
Were  you  thinking  of  a  forerunner  of  the  ^Messiah 
who  would  come  into  this  age  of  ours  tremulously 
seeking  popular  approval  with  delicate  words,  turn- 
ing and  twisting  his  doctrines  so  as  to  secure  favor 


20 

from  all  parties,  now  one  thing,  now  another,  bend- 
ing and  bowing  and  qnivering  like  a  mere  rush 
when  the  wind  blows  it  ?  You  would  better  have 
irone  into  kinoes'  houses  for  facile  favorites  than  have 
led  your  steps  down  here  in  search  of  a  preacher." 

That  exposition  is  excellent;  and  there  is  no 
reason  why  it  should  not  be  considered  satisfactory. 

3.  But  lately,  a  new  suggestion  has  been  made 
by  one  who  was  born  in  Palestine,  and  who  has 
been  thoroughly  educated  in  the  Greek  language. 
He  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  shepherd-boys 
often  shelter  themselves  among  the  tall  grass  during 
the  tedious  hours  of  the  middle  of  the  day,  when 
the  sunshine  is  hottest  upon  man  and  beast,  and 
while  away  the  time  with  playing  upon  a  rude  flute 
or  whistle  which  they  themselves  fashion  out  of  the 
reeds  that  shade  them.  Hence,  one  frequently 
stumbles  upon  such  a  musician  anywhere  by  the 
Jordan  all  along  its  course.  It  is  but  a  poor  little 
apology  for  a  tune  that  he  will  play ;  for  the  tone  of 
the  instrument  is  feeble  and  effeminate.  It  might 
well  become  the  symbol  of  a  gentle  sweetness  of 
entertainment,  altogether  without  either  vigor  or 
force. 

Now,  if  we  should  accept  this  as  the  meaning  cf 
our  Lord's  allusion,  the  paraphrase  would  probably 
read  thus:  "Did  you,  looking  for  a  forerunner  of 
the  Messiah,  come  down  here  beside  the  river  to 
hear  a  small  shepherd-boy  playing  upon  a  flute,  a 
mere  reed  blown  with  one's  breath?"  Such  a  sug- 
gestion is  at  least  worth  looking  up  for  the  com- 
mentaries; it  may  be  the  true  one. 


TIIK   KORERUNNER  OF  JESUS.  21 

II.  But  however  we  interpret  the  figure,  let  us 
now,  in  the  second  place,  consider  the  picture  of  the 
man  who  was  thrown  into  such  an  amazing  con- 
trast by  it. 

1.  Naturally,  this  stern  preacher,  just  coming 
forth  from  the  wilderness  solitudes  and  stirring  the 
whole  nation  at  once,  must  have  been  an  individual 
of  almost  phenomenal  endowments.  Every  age  has 
what  may  be  called  its  men  of  mark.  Society  is 
always  trying  to  create  such;  and  if  they  will  only 
be  peaceable  on  vexed  questions  of  casuistry,  and 
perhaps  be  immoral  or  of  easy  virtue  themselves, 
the  world  at  large  will  generally  greet  them  with 
welcome.  The  race  makes  a  peculiarly  sharp  de- 
mand upon  every  reformer  within  its  reach. 
Thrusting  him  up  to  the  extreme  limit  of  his  abil- 
ity, it  holds  him  accountable  for  furnishing  all  he 
can  accomplish.  Off  upon  a  watched  hill-top  he 
must  remain,  until  the  actual  amount  of  his  work- 
ing-power is  known  and  put  on  record.  Then  he 
is  suffered  to  come  down  quietly  to  the  level  of 
other  men,  and  is  ever  afterward  registered  for  pre- 
cisely what  he  is  worth.  That  is  to  say,  the  ques- 
tion now  shifts,  and  becomes  one  of  availability. 
How  can  he  be  most  used  ? 

2.  Spiritually,  therefore,  this  forerunner  of  Jesus 
Clirist  was  necessarily,  and  from  the  beginning,  a 
failure.  He  would  not  be  used  at  all.  The  priests 
tried  him;  and  he  called  them  vipers,  and  told  them 
he  wondered  how  such  hypocrites  could  escape  the 
damnation  of  hell.  Herod  tried  him  ;  and  had 
eventually  to  cut  off  his  head.      John  had  immense 


22  STUDIES    IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

power,  but  lie  was  impracticable.  There  was  some- 
thing very  remarkable  in  his  personal  career.  A 
lonely  hermit,  fed  on  locusts  and  wild  honey,  girded 
with  a  leathern  skirt  about  his  loins,  he  came  in  out 
of  mystery  and  silence,  and  began  preaching  about 
labor  and  wages,  about  honesty  and  purity,  about 
military  service  and  usurious  rates  of  interest.  He 
seemed  to  know  everything  that  was  going  on. 
And  he  struck  right  and  left  wherever  his  eyes  saw 
wrong,  no  matter  wdio  committed  it.  A  stroke  of 
deeper  irony  could  hardly  be  imagined  than  the 
comparison  of  this  man  with  a  reed  shaken,  or  a 
flute  blown  with  the  wind. 

3.  But  rhetorically,  John  the  Baptist  was  a  pro- 
digious success.  From  every  city  and  every  hamlet 
flocked  the  convicted  multitudes  to  be  baptized  in 
the  Jordan  for  the  remission  of  confessed  sin.  Of 
course,  his  reputation  was  towering,  his  influence 
was  paramount,  his  fame  was  peerless.  The  disci- 
ples of  Christ,  as  a  body,  felt  all  this.  They  bowed 
to  the  popular  estimate,  even  after  they  had  known 
Jesus  in  person.  Our  Lord  did  not  seek  to  change 
their  views,  but  the  rather  admitted  the  correctness 
of  them.  He  uttered,  in  his  own  right,  terms  of 
eminent  praise  concerning  his  cousin's  gifts.  Ab- 
solutely first  he  put  him  in  the  foremost  rank  of 
men — the  greatest  man  ever  born  of  woman. 

in.  But  now  what  did  John  really  do  to  merit 
all  this?  That  leads  us  forward  a  step.  Let  us  in- 
quire, next,  concerning  his  mission. 

I.  John  was  the  forerunner  of  Jesus:  what  he 
did  was  to  prepare  the  way  for  Jesus.      The  Old 


THE    FORERUNNER   OE  JESUS.  23 

Testament  prophecies  are  full  of  this.  The  close 
of  the  book  of  Malachi  predicted  this  man's  advent 
and  told  what  was  to  be  his  office.  In  oriental 
countries  it  was  the  custom,  whenever  the  king  was 
going  to  make  a  progress  through  a  certain  prov- 
ince or  district  of  his  realm,  that  a  herald  should 
precede  him  along  the  route  making  announcement 
of  his  purpose,  caring  for  the  roads,  and  seeing  that 
the  people  should  be  ready  to  receive  their  sover- 
eign fitly.  John  was  to  go  forward  to  preach  the 
law  before  Jesus  was  to  come  to  preach  the  gospel. 
Men  would  never  want  a  Saviour  till  they  felt  the 
peril  of  sin. 

2.  Thus  we  see  instantly  that  the  secret  of  John's 
power  did  not  lie  in  his  gifts  alone.  Plutarch,  wdien 
giving  account  of  the  great  commander  Phocion, 
says  that  his  speeches  are  to  be  estimated  like 
coins — not  for  their  size,  but  for  their  value.  De- 
mosthenes, afraid  of  his  utterances,  sharp  and  con- 
densed, used  to  exclaim,  when  he  rose  to  take  part 
in  the  debate:  ''Here  comes  the  ender  of  my  ha- 
rangues!" And  Phocion  himself  once  told  Leos- 
thenes  that  his  orations  resembled  cypress-trees — ■ 
they  w^ere  large  and  lofty,  but  they  bore  no  fruit. 
No;  not  even  John  the  Baptist  could  have  drawn 
Jerusalem  and  Judaea  down  to  the  Jordan  merely  by 
eloquence. 

3.  The  power  of  this  man  lay  in  the  message  he 
bore.  He  said  to  those  supercilious  Pharisees: 
"Repent,  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand." 
lie  introduced  his  hearers  abruptly  into  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Kino-  of  kincrs,  without  a  vail  before  his 


24  STUDIES    IN    MARK'S  GOSPEL. 

great  white  throne.  "Herod  feared  John,  and  did 
many  things,"  says  pious  old  Gurnall;  "but  if  he 
had  feared  God,  he  would  have  done  everything." 
Surely  it  was  not  for  want  of  plain  dealing  with 
him  from  this  intrepid  teacher.  He  told  the  whole 
Jewish  world  of  the  judgment  close  at  hand,  the 
wrath  of  God,  the  unquenchable  fire.  "Oh,  I  love 
those  who  thunder  out  the  Word!"  exclaimed 
George  Whitefield;  "the  Christian  world  is  in  a 
deep  sleep:  nothing  but  a  loud  voice  can  wake 
souls  out  of  it."  So  that  Juda^an  world  was  asleep 
when  John  came  forth  from  his  silence  cf  years, 
and  the  "voice  of  one  crying  in  the  wilderness" 
was  what  stirred  the  whole  people  into  penitence 
and  prayer  for  pardon. 

4.  And  then,  to  crown  all,  after  John,  Jesus  came 
in  person.  John  kept  telling  his  anxious  hearers 
about  the  One  whose  shoe's  latchet  he  was  un- 
worthy to  unloose.  And  his  entire  message  cul- 
minated suddenly  one  day  when  Immanuel  was 
seen  walking  along  by  the  riverside.  Then  he 
cried  out:  "Behold!  the  Lamb  of  God!"  In  the 
paintings  of  the  masters,  the  world  over,  this  is 
John's  best  moment.  The  emblems  are  chosen  to 
show  the  siQ:nificance  of  the  attitude.  There  is 
added  the  lamb,  and  with  it  a  scrolled  flag  the  staff 
cf  which  looks  like  a  rude  cross;  and  on  this  is 
written  the  final  proclamation  of  his  ministry  as 
the  forerunner  of  Christ:  "Behold,  the  Lamb  of 
God,  which  takelh  away  the  sin  of  the  world." 

5.  Herein  is  the  type  of  all  Christian  life  and 
duty.      John  must  come  earliest,   then  Jesus.      A 


THE   FORERUNNER  OF  JESUS.  25 

broken  law  must  be  heeded.  Some  practical  dis- 
posal must  be  made  of  liumau  guilt  before  any  soul 
can  come  forth  into  the  peace  of  the  gospel.  *'  First 
pure,  then  peaceable:"  that  is  the  order.  Then  all 
experience  fashions  itself  easily  to  the  rule  of  happy 
and  holy  living.  The  lamb  and  the  flag  are  the 
two  emblems  which  each  knight-templar  kept  for 
his  own,  when  the  spirit  of  chivalry  in  the  middle 
ages  rose  to  its  highest.  He  said  that  one  must  be 
gentle  as  the  lamb;  but  that  there  had  also  been 
given  him  a  banner  to  be  displayed,  because  of  the 
truth,  before  the  infidel;  and  thus  the  flag  would 
always  have  to  be  cherished  as  the  sign  of  courage 
for  a  grieved,  militant  church;  innocence  itself 
must  at  times  become  martial,  yet  even  military 
zeal  must  be  innocent;  the  Lamb  of  God  is  the 
lyion  of  Judah. 

IV.  Finally,  we  are  taught  our  lesson  as  to  the 
great  common  need  of  this  forerunner  of  the  Christ. 
He  had  his  limits  like  the  rest  of  us.  Jesus  said 
that,  great  as  John  was,  even  the  least  in  the  king- 
dom of  heaven  was  greater. 

I.  The  fact  is,  John  the  Baptist  was  only  a  sin- 
ner, needing  like  all  the  rest  to  repent,  believe,  and 
be  saved.  For  he  belonged  to  the  fallen  race  of 
humankind.  Not  even  the  austerities  of  his  fasting 
and  raiment  could  redeem  his  soul.  He  who  is 
condemned  to  die,  and  who  is  liable  to  be  sum- 
moned to  execution  at  any  moment,  may  be  con- 
sidered as  dead  to  all  intents  and  purposes  now. 
**  Death  passed  upon  all  men,  for  that  all  have 
sinned."     That  is  what  the  apostle  means  when  he 

2 


26  STUDIES  IN   mark's  GOSPEL. 

declares  that  all  men  are  *'clead  in  trespasses  and 
sins."  John,  the  Na^arite  preacher,  must  enter  the 
kingdom  of  heaven  by  Jesus  Christ,  who  is  the  door, 
just  as  anybody  else  by  faith  in  the  atonement. 

2.  And  this  is  our  conclusion  now.  This  is  pre- 
cisely where  our  present  study  brings  its  lesson  to 
bear  upon  our  consciences  and  hearts.  Better  is  it 
to  have  the  calm  repose  of  a  renewed  and  rational 
mind  sitting  at  the  feet  of  Jesus,  than  to  do  the 
daring  and  brilliant  exploits  of  a  madman.  Better 
that  the  world  shall  never  hear  of  us  as  famous  in 
history,  if  eternity  may  welcome  us  as  saved  and 
safe  at  the  right  hand  of  God.  Better  any  way, 
better  every  way,  to  be  alive  than  dead.  Better  to 
be  the  least  one  of  those  believing  and  penitent 
ones,  surely  and  securely  redeemed  by  the  blood  of 
Jesus  Christ,  than  to  be  the  greatest  of  those  whose 
fame  will  vanish  into  nothing.  *'For  this  is  he  of 
whom  it  is  written,  Behold,  I  send  my  messenger 
before  thy  face,  which  shall  prepare  thy  way  before 
thee.'^  *' Verily  I  say  unto  you,  Among  them  that 
are  born  of  women,  there  hath  not  risen  a  greater 
than  John  the  Baptist:  notwithstanding,  he  that  is 
least  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  is  greater  than 
he.'» 


A   day's   work   in   CAPERNAUM.  2/ 

III. 

A  DAY'S  WORK  IN  CAPERNAUM. 

"And  he  healed  many  that  were  sick  of  divers  diseases,  and 
cast  out  many  devils;  and  suffered  not  the  devils 

TO   SPEAK,  BECAUSE  THEY  KNEW   HIM." — Mark  1:34. 

The  text  forms  the  culmination  and  the  close  of 
a  most  remarkable  passage,  in  which  is  described, 
with  that  fullness  of  detail  for  which  the  evangelist 
Mark  is  so  distinguished,  just  one  day's  work  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  It  was  a  Sabbath-day;  and 
from  morning  to  even  when  "the  sun  did  set,"  he 
was  preaching  and  working  miracles  for  his  occu- 
pation. 

The  preaching  was  such  that  the  people  were 
**  astonished,"  and  the  miracles  were  such  that  they 
were  "amazed."  We  cannot  fail  to  see  that  these 
two,  the  wonders  and  the  doctrine,  go  together  in 
producing  the  impression  by  which  his  "fame'* 
was  spread  abroad  through  all  the  region  of  Galilee. 
He  taught  "as  one  that  had  authority,  and  not  as 
the  scribes,"  because  with  "authority"  he  com- 
manded the  unclean  spirits  also.  The  vast  powers 
of  his  evangelical  commission  from  heaven  covered 
the  signs  and  the  sermons,  and  made  them  help 
each  other. 

It  seems  worth  our  while,  now  once  for  all  in 
this  course  of  study,  that  an  hour  should  be  spent 
in  the   patient  and  exclusive  examination  of  the 


28  STUDIES    IN    mark's   GOSPEI,. 

miracles  wliicli  our  Saviour  wrought  in  attestation 
of  his  teaching. 

I.  There  were  some  few  outward  circumstances 
in  which  they  differed  from  all  others. 

1.  For  one  thing,  you  cannot  fail,  in  reading 
the  gospel  history,  to  have  been  struck  with  the 
almost  endless  variety  of  these  miracles  of  Jesus. 
He  hardly  moved,  without  some  splendid  sign  fail- 
ing by  the  way  to  show  he  had  passed. 

Everything  yielded  to  his  power.  Sickness  and 
disease  of  every  kind  were  rebuked.  The  powers  of 
nature  were  checked,  and  urged  forward,  at  his 
will.  The  sea  was  calmed;  the  loaves  were  multi- 
plied; biers  on  the  way  to  the  grave  were  stopped 
till  their  lifeless  burdens  were  quickened ;  sepul- 
chres opened  that  the  dead  might  come  forth;  fishes 
were  made  to  disclose  coin  to  pay  tribute-money, 
or  enter  a  net  in  myriad  shoals  out  in  deep  water, 
and  late  after  noon ;  billows  of  the  sea  were  forced 
to  harden  into  solidity  under  human  feet;  streams 
from  a  fountain  were  made  to  flash  into  wine. 
Thus  everything,  through  a  sphere  of  existence 
wide  as  the  world,  was  fain  to  forget  its  nature,  and 
remember  only  its  Master  in  him. 

2.  Then  again,  we  have  all  observed  that  our 
Lord's  miracles  were  wrought  in  his  oivn  name, 
Jesus  always  revered  the  Father ;  he  sighed  and 
looked  up  to  heaven.  But  he  told  his  disciples 
plainly,  *'My  Father  worketh  hitherto,  and  I 
work. '  * 

Hence  his  language  is  peculiar.  *'Thou  deaf 
and  dumb  spirit,  I  charge  thee  come  out  of  him." 


A   day's  work  in    CAPERNAUM.  29 

So  to  Jairus'  daughter:  *' Damsel,  I  say  unto  thee, 
Arise. ' ' 

Compare  in  this  particular  Simon  Peter  with  his 
divine  Master.  When  that  disciple  would  heal  a 
man  of  the  palsy,  he  must  say,  '*  Eneas,  Jesus 
Christ  maketh  thee  whole!'*  All  that  the  com- 
bined faith  of  Peter  and  John  both  could  do  with  a 
lame  man  at  the  Beautiful  Gate  was  to  take  him  by 
the  hand,  and  utter  over  him  the  invocation,  "In 
the  name  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  rise  up  and  walk  !" 
But  our  Lord,  to  a  poor  cripple  who  for  thirty-eight 
years  had  not  stood  on  his  feet,  had  only  to  say, 
^'Rise  up  and  walk,"  and  immediately  he  was 
made  whole. 

In  like  manner,  contrast  the  forms  of  work- 
inof  miracles  recorded  for  us  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment.  Moses  must  needs  pray  for  his  leprous 
sister  Miriam:  *'PIeal  her  now,  O  God,  I  be- 
seech thee!"  And  this  was  the  man  whose  rod 
divided  the  Red  Sea!  But  Jesus  lifted  no  prayer 
for  external  reinforcement  even  when  he  healed 
ten  lepers  at  a  time.  There  was  a  resident  power 
in  our  Lord  which  sufficed  for  all  the  wonders 
he  wrought.  When  the  disciples  failed  in  cast- 
ins:  out  the  difficult  devil  from  the  demoniac  boy, 
he  calmly  said,  *' Bring  him  unto  me!'*  Even 
his  bitterest  opposers  recognised  this  superiority; 
for  they  exclaimed,  ''When  Christ  cometh,  will  he 
do  more  miracles  than  these  which  this  man  hath 
done?" 

3.  Once  more ;  we  all  have  noticed  that  the 
miracles  of  our  Lord  were  much  more  extensive  than 


any  other  person  ever  wrought.     They  were  more 
in  number,  and  they  excelled  in  majesty. 

It  is  perhaps  a  solecism  to  say  that  one  miracle, 
is  greater  than  another.  But  then  we  speak  accu- 
rately enough  when  we  declare  that,  in  every  in- 
stance in  which  Jesus  and  the  other  miracle-work- 
ers who  went  before  him  or  came  after  him  in  the 
Scripture  record  happen  to  meet  on  the  same  plane, 
Christ's  miracles  always  in  some  particulars  trans- 
scend  theirs.  Elijah  raised  a  child  to  life;  but  we 
see  him  stretching  himself  upon  it  three  times  and 
praying  mightily,  with  every  appearance  of  intense 
effort  to  secure  the  divine  intervention.  Contrast 
this  with  the  serene  majesty  with  which  Jesus  stood 
at  the  door  of  a  sepulchre  in  Bethany,  and  said, 
"  La^jarus,  come  forth,"  to  one  who  had  lain  four 
days  in  corruption.  Blisha  made  his  twenty  loaves 
feed  a  hundred  men;  Jesus  made  his  five  loaves  and 
two  fishes  satisfy  five  thousand  men,  besides  the 
women  and  the  children  who  came  with  them. 

Then,  too,  there  was  the  use  of  a  sensuous  sign, 
or  a  conspicuous  instrument,  in  most  instances;  this 
always  betokened  the  employment  of  some  other 
person's  power.  Jesus  used  not  even  the  artifice  of 
displaying  a  divine  rod.  Blisha  could  turn  bitter 
waters  into  sweet  with  a  cruse  of  salt  at  Jericho: 
Jesus  turned  water  into  wine  with  only  a  word. 
*^ The  conscious  water  saw  its  God,  and  blushed." 
Elijah  divided  the  waves  with  his  mantle,  and  Mo- 
ses the  billows  with  his  staff;  but  Jesus  in  silence 
smoothed  the  waters  under  Peter's  footsteps,  and 
hushed  them  with  a  word  of  command,  when  they 


A   day's  work   in   CAPERNAUM.  3 1 

were  rushing  in  the  madness  of  a  storm.  Here  as 
ever  our  Lord  stood  peerless  and  alone.  There 
are  always  added  in  the  history  just  circumstances 
enough  to  show  a  difference  and  a  superiority  on 
his  part. 

4.  Again:  we  have  found  in  our  studies,  as  the 
chief  of  all  the  peculiarities  of  contrast,  that  the 
miracles  of  Jesus  were  in  every  instance  beneficent. 
Nowhere  in  the  Sacred  Records  do  we  discover  that 
he  wrought  even  so  much  as  one  as  a  destructive 
judgment  of  wrath. 

If  anybody  suggests  that  the  withering  of  the 
fig  tree  must  be  made  an  exception,  we  have  only 
to  remember  that  the  tree  was  never  smitten  for  its 
own  sake  at  all,  but  to  teach  a  gracious  lesson. 
Inanimate  and  painless,  it  was  merely  constituted 
an  instrument  of  admonition.  Our  Lord  destroyed 
fishes  to  feed  the  multitudes  on  the  shore  of  Gen- 
nesaret;  but  the  miracle  lay  in  the  feeding,  not  in 
the  destroying.  His  wonders  never  brought  curses, 
but  blessings.  He  lamed  no  one,  but  made  the 
lame  man  leap  as  a  hart.  He  rendered  no  man 
speechless;  he  caused  the  tongue  of  the  dumb  to 
sing.  He  struck  no  one  blind ;  he  only  opened 
eyes,  and  then  forgave  sins. 

That  this  peculiarity  attracted  notice  very  early 
and  was  considered  of  vast  importance,  is  evident 
from  an  old  legend  told  of  Constantine  the  Great. 
It  appears  that  at  first  his  mother,  Helena,  was  seri- 
ously offended  because  her  imperial  son  was  con- 
verted to  Christianity.  He  replied  by  inviting  her 
to  become  a  Christian  too.     And  he  proposed  a  test 


33  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

by  wlilcli  lier  pagan  religion  could  be  compared 
with  Christ's.  Two  of  the  chief  Greek  philoso- 
phers, Zeno  and  Cato,  were  selected  to  be  judges. 
Helena  had  one  chosen  magician,  so  runs  the  an- 
cient story;  his  name  was  Zambri.  He  said,  "I 
know  the  name  of  the  Omnipotent.  Let  them 
bring  me  the  fiercest  wild  bull  that  can  be  found. 
When  I  have  uttered  that  name  in  his  ear  he  will 
fall  dead.  The  experiment  was  tried;  the  bull  was 
brought,  the  word  was  spoken,  the  animal  fell  as  if 
struck  by  a  stone.  But  Sylvester,  who  now  stood 
forth  upon  Constantine's  side,  exclaimed,  "The 
name  he  has  pronounced  cannot  be  that  of  God,  but 
of  Satan,  for  Christ  does  not  smite  the  living  dead, 
but  restores  the  dead  to  life."  Then  he  made  the 
demand  that  Zambri  should  raise  up  the  dead  crea- 
ture and  set  him  on  his  feet  again.  So  the  emperor 
commanded;  but  this  the  man  could  not  do.  Then 
Sylvester  made  the  sign  of  the  cross;  the  bull  rose 
up  alive;  and  not  only  that,  it  was  ever  afterwards 
tame  and  gentle,  and  was  led  away  in  peace. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  indorse  or  contradict  the 
legend ;  the  teaching  is  clean  Christ  came  to 
exhibit  grace  and  love,  and  all  the  narrative  of  his 
life  shows  he  was  in  earnest.  He  did  not  destroy 
Jerusalem  that  killed  the  prophets;  he  sat  up  over 
against  the  city  and  wept  at  the  ruin  he  foresaw 
was  com  in  Of. 

Now,  for  example,  contrast  this  with  the  mis- 
sion of  Moses.  Sternly  and  relentlessly  it  was  the 
Lawgiver's  office  to  bring  on  those  awful  curses 
which   filled   Pharaoh  with   suffering.      One   after 


A   DAY'S   WORK   IN    CAPERNAUM.  33 

another  they  fell,  growing  in  their  violence,  till  all 
Egypt  wailed  over  the  firstborn  lying  dead  in  the 
households.  So  Elisha  could  turn  on  the  mockine 
children  of  Bethel,  who  said,  "Go  up,  thou  bald 
head,"  and  give  them  for  prey  to  the  wild  beasts  of 
the  field.  And  so  Elijah,  haggard  and  worn,  could 
lift  his  hand  to  heaven  for  fire  to  come  and  sweep 
away  division  after  division  of  Ahab's  soldiery  w^ith 
its  'liail  of  flame.  These  men  were  not  personally 
harsh,  vindictive,  or  severe.  It  was  the  spirit  of 
that  dispensation  which  compelled  them  to  revere 
the  very  letter  of  the  law.  Jesus  came  to  establish 
a  dispensation  of  love.  So  when  he  had  a  chance 
he  explained  to  his  disciples  the  difference:  "And 
so  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  time  was  come  that  he 
should  be  received  up,  he  steadfastly  set  his  face  to 
go  up  to  Jerusalem,  and  sent  messengers  before  his 
face;  and  they  went  and  entered  into  a  village  of 
the  Samaritans  to  make  ready  for  him.  And  they 
did  not  receive  him,  because  his  face  was  as  though 
he  would  go  to  Jerusalem.  And  when  his  disciples 
James  and  John  saw  this,  they  said,  lyord,  wilt  thou 
that  we  command  fire  to  come  down  from  heaven 
and  consume  them,  even  as  Elias  did?  But  he 
turned  and  rebuked  them,  and  said,  Ye  know  not 
what  manner  of  spirit  ye  are  of.  For  the  Son  of 
man  is  not  come  to  destroy  men's  lives,  but  to  save 
them.     And  they  went  to  another  village." 

In  these  respects,  then,  the  miracles  of  our  Lord 
transcended  all  the  others  recorded  in  the  Bible: 
they  were  more  numerous  and  varied,  they  were 
independently  announced  and  wrought,  they  were 

Stu.lics  lu  Murk's  Goniiel.  ^k 


34  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospel. 

more  extensive  and  splendid,  and  they  were  always 
beneficial  rather  than  destrnctive.  Thus  our  divine 
Redeemer  stood  unequalled  and  unparalleled.  If 
Moses'  wonders  rose  above  the  plane  of  common 
life  loftil}^,  as  rugged  and  ye.t  as  grand  as  Mount 
Ararat,  Jesus'  wonders  surely  rose  above  them  as 
the  early  rainbow  rose  above  even  Ararat's  summit, 
loftier  and  yet  more  lovely,  reaching  more  widely 
and  yet  more  graciously,  and  bearing  even  in  their 
wonderful  mystery  of  display  the  token  of  a  better 
covenant — a  purpose  of  good  which  should  stand 
unchallenged  while  the  world  endures,  and  be  com- 
pletely fulfilled  when  it  vanishes. 

II.  Thus  now  we  reach,  in  the  second  place,  the 
consideration  of  what  this  purpose  is.  What  was 
the  use  of  the  miracles  of  Christ  ? 

I.  IvCt  us  admit  in  the  outset,  in  order  to  guard 
against  misconception,  that  the  one  grand  service 
of  all  miracles  was  meant  to  be  performed  in  those 
which  Jesus  wrought:  they  were  evidential  proof s  of 
the  gospel. 

God  was  making  a  fresh  revelation  of  his  will 
from  heaven  to  men.  The  ' '  Law, ' '  with  Moses  as 
its  representative,  had  been  issued;  the  "Proph- 
ets," with  Elijah  as  one  of  their  chiefs,  had  been 
given  to  the  world;  now  the  "Gospel"  was  to  be 
announced  and  confirmed  "with  sii^ns  followiuQ:." 
That  those  who  were  with  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
while  he  was  [doing  his  matchless  day's  work  in 
Capernaum  on  this  occasion  perfectly  understood 
the  relation  of  his  wonders  to  his  word,  is  plain 
from  the  excited  exclamation  they  made.     This  the 


A    day's   work   in   CAPERNAUM.  35 

New  Version  records  with  more  accuracy  of  transla- 
tion than  the  Common  Version:  ''What  is  this?  a 
new  teaching!  With  authority  he  commandeth 
even  the  unclean  spirits,  and  they  obey  him." 
Three  dispensations  have  been  vouchsafed  to  men; 
so  three  periods  or  epochs  of  miracles  have  been 
noted  in  human  history;  and  these  have  ranged  in 
cycles  of  about  seventy  years  each  around  the  lives 
of  those  personages  who  appeared  together  on  the 
mount  of  Transfiguration— Moses,  Elijah,  and  Jesus 
Christ 

2.   Again,  our  Lord's  miracles  were  designed  to 
lift  the  world  out  of  the  destructive  ruin  of  sin. 

The  truth  is,  the  race  is  all  now  under  the 
crushing  weight  of  the  fall  of  our  first  parents  from 
holiness.  Oh,  how  mysterious,  and  yet  how  bale- 
fully  prevalent,  is  sin!  It  runs  in  the  river,  it  falls 
in  the  rain,  it  lurks  in  the  flower,  it  roars  in  the 
storm,  it  sighs  in  the  wind;  it  is  everywhere,  all- 
pervading,  all-diffusive.  It  causes  every  sickness, 
it  racks  every  nerve  that  twinges  with  pain,  it 
bends  the  bone  of  every  deformity,  it  shrivels  the 
tendon  of  every  weakness,  it  lifts  the  eyelid  for 
every  tear  that  falls,  it  rings  each  funeral  bell,  it 
digs  all  the  graves;  it  marshals  every  army  that 
goes  forth  to  slaughter  men,  it  whirls  every  mael- 
strom, stirs  up  every  tornado,  kindles  every  mount- 
ain that  burns,  and  rocks  every  earthquake.  All 
that  we  dread  comes,  in  this  sin-cursed  world  to  the 
sin-cursed  race,  from  the  devil,  who  is  the  author  of 
confusion.  There  is  a  famine:  we  feel  it  is  because 
the  earth  is  under  the  wrath  of  God.     There  is  a 


36  STUDIES   IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

pestilence:  we  feel  it  is  because  the  air  is  under  the 
pressure  of  retribution.  There  is  anguish  and  in- 
justice, lying-  and  murder,  suffering  and  wrong 
everywhere,  because  law  has  been  broken  and  pen- 
alty has  been  let  loose  upon  the  transgressors.  The 
devil  laughs,  the  grave  cries,  "Give,"  damnation 
slumbers  not,  and  the  world  is  rushing  forward  to 
meet  its  doom. 

Into  this  state  of  things  came  Jesus  of  Nazareth, 
the  son  of  Mary,  the  Son  of  God.  Against  the 
whole  array  of  wickedness  and  wailing  and  woe  he 
set  himself  on  the  instant  of  his  arrival.  One  blast 
of  a  trumpet  was  heard  on  the  field.  All  the  world 
looked  up  and  saw  the  Prince  had  come!  With 
the  entire  power  of  the  celestial  universe  behind 
him  he  entered  the  conflict.  "It  pleased  the  Fa- 
ther that  in  him  all  fulness  should  dwell — the  ful- 
ness of  the  Godhead  bodily."  So  he  came  as  the 
commander  of  the  Lord's  hosts.  His  voice  was 
heard  now;  not  a  noisy  voice,  but  a  voice  still  and 
small,  for  it  was  not  his  business  to  "cry  in  the 
streets."  The  tones  of  it,  however,  had  unwonted 
power,  for  the  orders  it  issued  were  unusual,  the 
combinations  of  attack  were  fresh,  and  Satan  soon 
began  to  experience  the  almost  unendurable  pres- 
sure. 

3.  Just  here  we  perceive  another  direction  of 
purpose  in  these  miracles  of  Jesus.  They  were 
designed  to  exhibit  his  entire  stiprcmacy  in  the  gov- 
ern in  Qf  of  the  world. 

No  illustration  of  this  can  be  found  more  vivid 
than  that  which  is  offered  by  the  cure  of  the  jDoor 


A  day's  work  in  CAPKRNAUM.  37 

creature  jDOSsessed  by  tlie  devil.  The  story  is  told 
ill  the  chapter  we  are  now  studying.  A  perfect 
blaze  of  splendid  miracles  shone  before  the  dazzled 
eyes  of  the  crowd  in  Capernaum  all  that  day.  But 
it  was  not  the  cure  of  Peter's  wife's  mother,  nor  the 
healing  of  such  as  were  afflicted  with  ordinary  dis- 
eases, that  most  arrested  attention.  It  was  the  dis- 
closure of  the  fact  that  the  two  highest  antagonists 
in  the  realms  of  light  and  darkness,  good  and  evil, 
heaven  and  hell,  were  now  openly  matched  against 
each  other  in  the  streets  of  their  town,  and  Jesus 
was  triumphant. 

First  there  came  the  parley,  and  the  abject  cry 
of  the  devil  for  an  armistice  in  the  fiq-ht:  "And 
there  was  in  their  synagogue  a  man  with  an  un- 
clean spirit;  and  he  cried  out,  saying,  I^et  us  alone! 
wdiat  have  we  to  do  with  thee,  thou  Jesus  of  Naza- 
reth? art  thou  come  to  destroy  us?  I  know  thee 
wdio  thou  art,  the  Holy  One  of  God.  And  Jesus  re- 
buked him,  saying.  Hold  thy  peace,  and  come  out 
of  him.  And  when  the  unclean  spirit  had  torn 
him,  and  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  he  came  out  of 
him." 

Satan  admits  supremacy,  and  supplicates  a  favor 
of  Immanuel.  He  says  he  knows  the  being  who  is 
now  overmastering  him,  and  he  publicly  calls  Jesus 
"  the  Holy  One  of  God."  And  yet  our  Lord  will 
have  no  words  with  him;  he  says,  *'Be  still,  and 
get  out  of  this  man!  Have  no  more  talk  about  it! 
Out  with  you!" 

Then  came  the  full  admission,  and  the  report 
spread   concerning   a   new   revelation,  and   a   new 


38  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPKl.. 

prophet:  **Aiid  they  were  all  amazed,  insomuch 
that  they  questioned  among  themselves,  What 
thing  is  this?  what  new  doctrine  is  this?  for  with 
authority  commandeth  he  even  the  unclean  spirits, 
and  they  obey  him.  And  immediately  his  fame 
spread  abroad  throughout  all  the  region  round 
about  Galilee.'*  From  this  time  onward,  there  was 
only  one  story  to  be  told.  The  holy  war  goes  on. 
The  kingdom  of  darkness  is  not  yet  overthrown, 
but  it  soon  will  be.  With  his  earliest  miracle, 
Christ  showed  with  what  sort  of  weapons  he  meant 
now  to  oppose  sin  and  all  the  results  of  sin.  He 
went  to  the  house  of  a  village  maiden,  and 
wrought  his  first  wonder  at  a  wedding.  Thus  he 
set  his  seal  on  lawful  marriage,  put  his  stigma  on 
divorce,  and  proclaimed  an  end  to  lawlessness,  li- 
cense, and  lust.  Thus  every  miracle  struck  at 
some  sin  and  proclaimed  some  new  law  of  love  and 
truth. 

Every  sick  man  healed  was  redeemed  from  one 
of  the  consequences  of  sin.  The  sea  was  calmed  as 
a  rebuke  to  the  wild  powers  of  nature  which  had 
grown  turbulent  in  this  world  cursed  by  sin.  The 
feeding  of  the  hungry  thousands  told  of  gospel 
plenty,  and  said  want  would  be  banished  when  men 
ceased  to  sin.  Satan  withered  hands:  Christ  healed 
them.  Satan  palsied  feet  and  ankles:  Christ  loos- 
ened them  into  strength.  Satan  put  out  eyes, 
stopped  ears,  silenced  tongues;  Jesus  came  to  set  all 
free  again.  Ah,  what  a  close  that  day  at  Caperna- 
um had!  What  rejoicings  there  must  have  been  in 
many  a  dwelling!     How  swiftly  the  I^ord's  hand 


A  day's   work    in    CArKRNAUM.  39 

went  forth  scattering-  generous  benedictions  where- 
ever  it  touched!  How  still  the  demons  were  before 
their  Master! 

**And  at  even,  when  the  sun  did  set,  they 
brought  unto  him  all  that  were  diseased,  and  them 
that  were  possessed  with  devils.  And  all  the  city 
was  gathered  together  at  the  door.  And  he  healed 
many  that  were  sick  of  divers  diseases,  and  cast  out 
many  devils;  and  suffered  not  the  devils  to  speak, 
because  they  knew  him." 

A  single  message  remains  to  be  suggested  as  we 
close  our  study.  It  is  not  enough  for  us  simply  to 
admit  the  divinity  or  even  the  godhead  of  our  Lord, 
at  the  conclusion  of  our  day  at  Capernaum.  This 
will  not  satisfy  any  soul's  deepest  need.  Miracles 
are  more  than  evidences  when  they  have  parables  in 
them.  A  supercilious  spirit  of  patronage  will 
sometimes  attempt  to  compliment  Christianity,  as 
the  best  religion  ever  offered  to  human  reason.  But 
this  is  nothing  but  self-conceit  blinding  itself  with 
the  brilliance  of  its  own  flattery.  Canon  lyiddon 
said  shrewdly,  long  ago:  *'When  one  drops  down 
from  the  exalted  notion  of  the  true  God,  to  the  lower 
plane  of  Deism,  he  is  on  the  fair  way  to  simple 
hero-worship  of  which  himself  is  the  hero."  The 
wonders  which  Jesus  wrought  in  those  hours  were 
disclosures  of  divine  grace  as  well  as  of  divine 
power.  The  study  of  them  will  be  lost  if  it  does  not 
lead  each  heart  to  penitence  for  sin,  and  prayer  for 
a  new  life. 


40  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPli;i.. 

IV. 

HEALING  A  PARABLE  01^  PARDON. 

"  And  there  came  a  leper  to  him,  beseeching  him,  and  kneel- 
ing DOWN  TO   him,  and   SAYING  UNTO   HIM,  If   THOU   WILT,  THOU 

canst  make  me  CLEAN." — Mark  \:\o. 

One  of  the  principles  of  God's  government  in 
this  world,  frequently  exhibited  in  the  Scriptures,  is 
to  involve  a  greater  thing  in  a  less.  Hence,  we 
often  find  in  the  quietest  narratives  of  the  New 
Testament  a  deep  spiritual  significance.  When 
once  this  is  disclosed  to  us,  the  mere  commonplace 
story  of  the  event  passes  out  of  notice  into  compara- 
tive insignificance.  It  makes  us  think  of  the  East- 
ern fable  of  a  vessel  fished  out  of  the  sea,  forth  from 
which  appeared  a  genie^  whose  rising  figure  became 
a  cloud  so  large  that  it  seemed  as  if  it  never  could 
be  closed  back  into  its  prison.  This  is  a  type  of 
much  of  the  inspired  history.  For  when  even  an 
ordinary  event  is  fairly  opened,  there  comes  to  view 
an  unexpected  and  extraordinary  mystery  of  intelli- 
gent meaning  which  cannot  afterwards  be  con- 
cealed from  our  admiration,  but  really  remains  the 
chief  object  of  our  notice. 

I.  For  an  illustration,  take  this  story  of  the  man 
cured  of  his  leprosy  by  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  We 
might  have  deemed  such  an  incident  a  mere  proof 
of  the  prevalence  of  this  awful  disease.  And  we 
should  have  said  that  his  relatives  and  townsmen 


HEALING   A   PARABI^K    OF    PARDON.  41 

were  to  be  conp^ratulated  heartily  upon  the  generous 
opportuneness  of  the  Saviour's  presence  and  power. 
But,  a  moment  after,  we  discover  that  the  leper  has 
been  more  than  cured;  he  has  been  converted,  and 
now  becomes  an  heir  of  heaven  through  divine 
grace. 

We  find  ourselves  constrained  to  believe  that 
this  miracle  of  healing  has  been  wrought  in  order  to 
the  greater  miracle  of  pardoning  his  sin  and  regen- 
erating his  heart.  The  white  and  mutilated  limbs 
of  the  man's  whole  nature  have,  all  on  a  sudden, 
thrown  off  their  death  and  corruption,  and  he  is 
now  spiritually  free  and  clean.  So  there  is  here 
what  might  be  called  a  parable  in  the  miracle. 

This  principle  has  an  almost  limitless  illustra- 
tion in  the  gospel  narratives.  Something  greater 
than  what  appears  may  be  expected  to  come  out  of 
what  appears.  We  may  well  stand  waiting  and  re- 
main watching;  for  there  is. much  of  that  of  which 
BzekiePs  vision  of  a  '*wdieel  in  the  middle  of  a 
wheel "  was  designed  to  be  a  type.  We  need  to  un- 
fold what  the  inner  wheel  has  to  reveal  before  we 
can  say  we  fully  appreciate  any  event.  It  is  all  in- 
telligently planned;  for  "the  spirit  of  the  living 
creature  was  in  the  wheels, '^  and  *' their  wings 
were  full  of  eyes  round  about." 

It  is  very  easy  to  say  this  happens  so.  Let  us 
look  at  another  instance  then.  A  poor  blind  man  is 
seen  groping  about  the  streets  of  Jerusalem.  This 
was  a  frequent  sight  in  that  city,  and  we  should 
make  no  special  comment  upon  it.  But  now  we 
read  on  in  the  story:  "And  his  disciples  asked  him, 


42  STUDIES  IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

saying,  Master,  who  did  sin,  this  man,  or  his  pa- 
rents, that  he  was  born  blind?  Jesus  answered. 
Neither  hath  this  man  sinned  nor  his  parents:  but 
that  the  works  of  God  should  be  made  manifest  in 
him." 

After  this,  we  learn  that  the  Lord  opens  his 
eyes.  That  old  man's  life  becomes  transfigured. 
In  the  end,  he  is  pronounced  a  believer,  and  all  his 
sins  are  pardoned.  He  had  been  born  blind  in  order 
that  God  might  be  glorified  in  his  salvation.  A 
nameless  Jew  thereafter  ranks  with  Cyrus,  who  was 
named  before  his  birth,  and  with  Jeremiah,  who 
was  sanctified  before  he  was  created.  His  history, 
as  if  ^t  a  divine  touch,  springs  clear  up  out  of 
everyday  life:  he  has  been  assigned  a  part  and  a 
place  in  the  infinite  purpose  of  the  Almighty.  He 
suffered  that  he  might  be  crowned. 

All  this  is  seen  more  clearly  still  when  we 
choose  some  familiar  narrative,  and  dwell  upon 
even  its  minor  details.  Bartimeus'  blindness  helps 
us  somewhat;  but  the  dullness  of  the  disciples  who 
hindered  him  makes  us  see  more  evidently  than 
ever  the  hindrances  which  over-fastidious  profes- 
sors of  religion  put  in  the  way  of  anxious  sinners; 
the  casting  away  of  his  garment  when  he  ran  to 
Jesus  pictures  the  sacrifice  any  earnest  seeker  will 
make  in  order  to  be  sure  of  salvation. 

Just  so,  dwell  for  a  moment  upon  the  account  of 
the  man  cured  of  the  palsy,  as  repeated  by  Luke. 
What  a  parable  it  makes  !  There  is  the  helpless- 
ness of  the  sinner  in  the  paralysis  of  sin:  there  is 
the  zeal  of  friends  in  hurrying  a  hopeless  case  to 


HEALING   A    PARABLE   OF   TARDON,  43 

Christ :  there  is  the  faith  of  one  in  dead  earnest 
breaking  his  way  through  all  obstacles:  there  is 
the  quick  obedience  of  a  soul  that  stands  and  walks 
at  the  first  divine  command:  there  is  the  applause 
of  sympathetic  believers  who  glorify  God  when  a 
lost  soul  is  saved. 

Now  what  needs  to  be  noted  is  that  this  is  true 
of  all  of  the  miracles  wrought  by  Jesus  himself. 
To  each  of  them  there  was  an  external  appearance, 
so  that  to  the  natural  sense  it  was  a  wonder;  and 
then  there  wasjust  as  truly  to  each  of  them  an  in- 
ternal meaning,  none  the  less  wonderful,  but  when 
fitly  interpreted  all  the  more  glorious.  The  mir- 
acles were  parables. 

This  gives  us  the  reason  why  the  accounts  of 
these  signs  when  expounded  in  detail  and  (as  some 
term  it)  "spiritualized,"  become  such  vivid  illus- 
trations of  what  is  experimental  and  evangelical. 
The  outer  or  temporal  benefit  includes  what  is  in- 
ternal and  religious.  Bach  of  these  miracles  of  per- 
sonal healing  resembles  the  man  who  is  the  subject 
of  it,  in  that  it  has  a  soul  and  a  body,  and  the  soul 
has  infinitely  the  greater  value  of  the  two.  The 
gospel  student  is  apt  to  be  surprised  when  he  earli- 
est discovers  this;  but  it  always  proves  edifying  to 
a  devout  Christian  to  discover,  upon  patient  exam- 
ination of  almost  au}^  one  of  these  stories  of  cure, 
how  fit  a  figure  of  conversion  from  sin  it  becomes, 
and  how  felicitously  all'  its  circumstances  range 
themselves  in  to  show  the  processes  of  renewal  by 
grace. 

For  instance,  the  restoration  of  a  cripple's  with- 


44  STUDIES   IN   MARK  S   GOSPEL. 

ered  hand  makes  us  think  of  a  sinner's  inability 
supplemented  by  the  sovereignty  of  divine  grace. 

The  raising  of  a  dead  Lazarus  to  new  life  re- 
minds us  of  the  tearing  away  of  the  cerements  of 
old  sin  and  death,  a  grave  of  corruption  broken, 
and  the  fresh  blood  of  spiritual  vitality  sent  joy- 
ously coursing  through  the  veins  of  an  existence, 
nobler  and  more  welcome  now  than  ever. 

It  would  be  foolish  to  assert  that  all  this  is  the 
fruit  of  an  ingenious  knack  at  preaching,  and  illus- 
tration-finding, and  to  frame  an  objection  out  of  a 
compliment  to  ministers  who  can  force  a  few  verses 
to  teach  almost  anything  they  please.  A  remark- 
able instance  is  directly  within  our  reach,  to  show 
that  our  Lord  blamed  his  disciples  for  not  seeing 
and  not  remembering  the  parable  of  the  leaven  he 
had  put  in  his  miracle  of  feeding  the  five  thousand 
with  the  loaves.  It  is  enough  to  reply  to  this  cavil 
by  reminding  those  who  suggest  it  that  it  will  cer- 
tainly not  hold  elsewhere.  No  matter  how  shrewd 
the  man  of  the  pulpit  may  be,  he  will  test  his  pow- 
ers in  vain  upon  the  miracles  which  any  one  other 
than  Christ  himself  ever  wrought.  Let  the  plagues 
of  Moses,  for  example,  be  forced  to  preach  the  gos- 
pel; let  the  destruction  of  Ahab's  fifties  by  Elijah 
be  compelled  to  teach  faith  and  repentance;  see 
what  can  be  made  of  Blisha's  causing  the  iron  to 
swim!  Then  turn  to  the  poor  woman  creeping  up 
in  the  press  to  touch  the  hem  of  Jesus'  garment, 
and  mark  what  a  difference  ! 

11.  It  is  likely  that  with  these  illustrations  the 
principle  is  now  made  perfectly  clear.    Let  us  move 


HEALING   A    PARABLE    OF   TARDON.  45 

on  at  once  to  seek  for  the  suggestions  wliicli  come 
from  it  for  practical  use. 

1.  First  of  all,  we  may  learn  to  congratulate 
ourselves  upon  tJic  voluminous  increase  given  foi'  our 
service  of  fresh  illu,strations  of  gospel  trutJi. 

Let  parents  remember  this  in  their  instruction 
of  the  children.  We  recognise  the  eminent  help 
we  receive  from  our  Lord's  parables  in  exhibiting 
to  human  understanding  man's  ruin  and  Christ's 
salvation.  Now  here  are  more  parables,  and  all  of 
them  are  brilliantly  evangelical.  Hence  when  our 
familiar  stories  become  feeble  for  the  moment, 
through  men's  familiarity  with  them,  right  along- 
side we  find  miracles  almost  numberless  which  are 
parables  also,  fresh  and  beautiful. 

2.  Again  :  we  learn  that  oiLr  Lord^'s  actions  arc  to 
be  studied  as  well  as  his  speech. 

It  was  said  of  him  that  he  spake  as  never  man 
spake  before.  It  is  just  as  true,  and  in  like  manner 
instructive,  that  he  wrought  miracles  as  never  man 
wrouijht  them  before.  So  in  his  action  there  was 
speech.  He  once  told  his  disciples,  "  The  words 
that  I  speak  unto  you,  they  are  spirit,  and  they  are 
life."  And  he  might  have  added  of  his  deeds  also 
which  he  performed  in  their  presence  something 
quite  as  suggestive  in  explanation;  because  he  him- 
self was  "the  Word,"  they  were  word,  and  "the 
Word  was  God." 

We  see  a  lame  man  healed:  so  we  instantly  dis- 
cover that  the  warm  love  of  God  for  the  cripple's 
soul  is  kindled  in  the  regard  he  feels  for  his  body. 
He  who  says,  "  Arise,  take  up  thy  bed  and  walk," 


46  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

is  the  same  who  lias  power  to  forgive  sins.  Thus 
the  danger  and  the  death  of  one's  spiritual  being 
are  always  hinted  at  in  the  plain  efforts  to  check 
infirmity  or  remove  disease. 

The  inner  meaning  of  our  Lord's  action  is  like 
the  fire  in  the  burning  bush  at  Horeb;  it  shines 
through  it,  while  it  does  not  consume  it.  It  is  not 
at  all  inferior  because  it  is  interior.  The  flame  of 
new  significance  does  not  hide,  but  only  illumines 
the  wonderful  work;  and  then  the  fair  light  falls  on 
everything  at  once  all  around. 

3.  Then,  next  to  this,  we  may  learn  that  there 
is  a  pe7'sonal  adveisary  of  otir  Lord  yesiLS  Christ  in 
this  worlds  against  whose  power  the  work  and  speech 
alike  of  his  life  are  arrayed. 

Most  of  us  have  seen  a  great  many  paintings 
and  engravings  of  these  striking  and  dramatic 
scenes  of  the  New  Testament.  The  figure  of  our 
divine  Master  performing  his  wonderful  works  has 
always  been  a  favorite  theme  in  Christian  art.  But 
one  of  the  parties,  who  in  every  instance  was  pres- 
ent, we  have  rarely  if  ever  seen  drawn  in  any  repre- 
sentation upon  the  canvas.  Just  out  of  sight,  yet 
beholding  the  whole  miracle,  must  have  stood 
Satan,  the  recognized  prince  of  the  powers  of  the 
air.  So  we  may  well  bear  in  mind  that  the  great 
"signs"  Jesus  wrought  were  more  than  his  mere 
credentials  as  an  ambassador  from  heaven  ;  they 
were  more  than  personal  benefits  bestowed  upon  hu- 
man recipients;  they  were  each  in  turn  tremendous 
onslaughts  upon  the  kingdom  of  darkness,  direct 
attacks  upon  BeeUebub,  king  in  the  realm  of  Belial. 


HEALING    A    PARABLE    OB^   PARDON.  47 

There  is  no  one  thing,  which  comes  to  light  in 
the  New  Testament  more  jDlainly,  than  the  explicit 
acknowledgment  of  a  personal  antagonist  of  God  in 
this  world,  every  energy  of  whose  wily  intelligence 
is  constantly  in  exercise  to  thwart  the  purposes  of 
grace  in  the  gospel.  Mysterious  as  it  may  seem  to 
be,  it  is  surely  revealed  that  there  is  a  devil  here 
loose  among  men,  and  always  contending  for  their 
bodies  and  souls.  Why  the  Almighty  permits  this 
conflict,  even  for  a  season,  we  may  not  be  able  to 
understand;  he  might  most  assuredly  sweep  away 
Apollyon  and  all  his  legions  with  the  same  breath 
with  which  he  created  them.  But  he  prefers 
rather  to  meet  him  as  a  foe  for  a  recognized 
while,  and  even  sometimes  to  suffer  him  to  win  a 
victory. 

The  very  phraseology  of  the  gospels  proves  and 
illustrates  this.  Satan  is  mentioned  by  name  over 
and  over  again.  Simon  was  told  he  desired  to 
"  sift "  him.  He  put  the  betrayal  into  the  heart  of 
Judas.  He  gave  Ananias  his  lie,  and  Peter  his  de- 
nial. And  nowhere  does  this  conflict  come  into 
more  conspicuous  exhibition  than  in  the  stories  of 
the  miracles.  The  picture  of  our  Lord's  earthly 
ministry  is  like  that  which  the  ancient  prophet  saw 
in  his  vision:  "And  he  showed  me  Joshua  the  high 
priest  standing  before  the  Angel  of  the  Lord,  and 
Satan  standing  at  his  right  hand  to  resist  him." 
Jesus  was  the  acknowledged  adversary  of  the  devil 
from  the  beginning.  All  the  wonderful  works  he 
wrought  were  meant  to  shake  the  hold  of  the  prince 
of  evil  upon  the  fallen  world. 


48 

4-  This  will  open  the  way  for  a  fourth  lesson: 
we  now  begin  to  understand  why  ycsiLs  speaks  in 
such  a  direct  and  personal  manner  when  he  works  J  lis 
miracles  of  relief. 

Of  course,  this  comes  to  view  most  plainly 
whenever  he  is  curing  demoniacs.  If  ne  says, 
*'Come  out  of  the  man,  thou  unclean  spirit,"  we 
all  understand  that  he  is  talking  to  a  demon.  But 
do  we  remember  he  once  said,  "Peace,  be  still," 
when  he  seemed  to  be  rebuking  the  waves  on  the 
Sea  of  Galilee,  and  does  it  not  help  us  somewhat  to 
think  that  he  was  not  talking  to  mere  water,  but 
to  the  devil  beneath  it?  So  with  sickness  and  pain 
and  want.  Jesus  evidently  considered  every  sick 
man  or  blind  man  or  crippled  man  as  being  in  sin 
and  under  Satan's  power.  He  needed  pardon  as 
well  as  cure.  Satan  had  bound  him,  Christ  came 
to  loose  him  from  his  bonds.  We  have  a  positive 
statement  of  this  m  the  story  which  is  recorded  by 
Luke: 

"And  behold,  there  was  a  woman  which  had  a 
spirit  of  infirmity  eighteen  years,  and  was  bowed 
together,  and  could  in  no  wise  lift  up  herself.  And 
when  Jesus  saw  her,  he  called  her  to  him  and  said 
unto  her,  Woman,  thou  art  loosed  from  thine  in- 
firmity. And  he  laid  his  hands  on  her:  and  im- 
mediately she  was  made  straight,  and  glorified 
God."  They  found  fault  with  him  for  this  mir- 
acle, and  he  defended  himself  by  saying  he  had 
been  fiorhtins:  his  usual  foe: 

o  o 

"And  ought  not  this  woman,  being  a  daughter 
of  Abraham,    whom  Satan  hath  bound,    lo,    these 


HEALING   A    PARABLK   OF   PARDON.  49 

eighteen  years,  be  loosed  from  this  bond  on  the 
Sabbath-day?  And  when  he  had  said  these 
things,  all  his  adversaries  were  ashamed:  and 
all  the  people  rejoiced  for  all  the  glorious  things 
that  were  done  by  him." 

5.  Finally,  we  learn  from  this  discussion,  what 
is  the  superlative  excellence  of  the  miracles  of  our  Lord 
yestis  as  studies:  they  are  redemptive  and  evangel- 
ical, and  all  tell  the  story  of  the  cross  on  which  the 
Saviour  died. 

This  must  have  been  what  Christ  meant  when, 
in  the  account  of  miracles  he  directed  to  be  sent 
back  to  John  the  Baptist,  he  put  this  remarkable 
sentence:  *'and  the  poor  have  the  gospel  preached 
to  them."  The  truth  is,  the  miracles  preached  the 
gospel  quite  as  much  as  anything  else.  To  redeem 
from  sin  was  the  simple  but  sublime  purpose  of 
them  all. 

Hence  the  extreme  guilt  of  that  generation  for 
rejecting  him.  Not  because  he  was  a  mere  healer 
of  diseases,  but  because  he  was  a  physician  of  souls, 
was  he  of  so  much  importance.  So  he  said,  ''If  I 
had  not  done  among  them  the  works  which  none 
other  man  did,  they  had  not  had  sin;  but  now  have 
they  both  seen  and  hated  both  me  and  my  Father." 
He  could  not  have  meant  to  call  notice  to  the  mere 
showiness  of  the  wonders  he  had  wrought;  he  was 
reproaching  them  because  they  turned  away  from 
the  inner  teaching  of  the  parables  within  his  mir- 
acles. 

So  now;  men's  guilt  in  refusing  Christ  does  not 
lie  in  the  mere  rejection  of  miracles  as  evidences, 

studies  in  Mai k'HOospel,  . 


^O  STUDIES  IN  MARK  S  GOSPEIv. 

but  of  miracles  as  gospel  sermons.  It  is  not  just 
because  tliey  will  not  accept  the  offer  of  a  Saviour 
who  heals  a  withered  hand,  that  men  are  con- 
demned; but  because  they  will  not  receive  him 
who  restores  a  soul  from  the  withering  influence 
of  sin.  This  is  counting  the  blood  of  the  covenant 
an  unholy  thing. 

Hence,  the  value  of  Jesus'  intercession  still. 
Everything  conspires  to  lift  the  cross  before  the 
eyes  of  men.  The  centre  of  the  created  universe 
is  at  Calvary.  To  redeem  you  and  me  from  the 
otherwise  incurable  leprosy  of  sin,  Jesus  died  and 
rose  again;  and  that  resurrection  was  the  grandest 
miracle  of  all,  and  contains  in  it  the  image  for  the 
finest  parable  of  all. 

The  day  of  showy  w^onder-working  is  ended  long 
ago,  for  God  has  now  no  new  dispensation  to  send 
to  men.  But  the  day  of  wonder-teaching  still  con- 
tinues. He  that  can  cure  leprosy  can  also  forgive 
sin.  And  our  prayer  is  only  that  here  put  on 
record:  "If  thou  wilt,  thou  canst  make  me  clean!" 
And  to  any  sincere  soul  that  lifts  it,  he  will  certain- 
ly put  forth  his  hand  and  will  say,  *'I  will;  be 
thou  clean!" 


REASONS   IN    RESI^RVK.  5 1 


REASONS  IN  RESERVE. 

"  But  there  were  certain  of  the  scribes  sitting  there, 

AND   reasoning   IN   THEIR   HEARTS." — Ma7k  2:6. 

Our  study  to-day  is  designed  to  cover  the  entire 
account  of  the  miracle  of  healing  wrought  for  the 
cure  of  the  man  who  was  ^'sick  of  a  palsy."  But 
our  practical  aim  will  be  to  dwell  particularly  on 
one  feature  in  the  behavior  of  some  of  the  by-stan- 
ders. 

It  is  said,  that  when,  in  Queen  Elizabeth's  time, 
a  statute  was  announced  commanding  all  people  to 
come  to  church,  the  papists  sent  to  Rome  to  know 
the  Pope's  pleasure.  He  returned  to  them  this  an- 
swer: "  Bid  the  Catholics  in  England  give  me  their 
hearts,  and  the  Queen  may  have  all  the  rest  of 
them." 

All  true  religion  is  located  in  the  heart.  Where 
the  human  heart  goes,  the  human  life  will  go. 
The  New  Testament  is  a  revelation  addressed  to 
the  heart.  Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  was  "set  for  the 
fall  and  rising  again  of  many  in  Israel,  and  for  a 
sign  to  be  spoken  against,  that  the  thoughts  of 
many  hearts  maybe  revealed."  A  most  interest- 
ing illustration  of  this  is  found  in  that  chapter  of 
Mark's  Gospel  which  comes  under  our  study  to-day. 
The  crowd  was  so  great  that  those  in  Capernaum 
who  wished  to  have  their  friends  healed  of  disease 


52  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEIv. 

could  not  get  tlirongh  the  press.  Four  persons 
there  were  who  ingeniously  clambered  up  on  the 
roof,  bearing  a  helpless  paralytic,  whom  they  let 
down  by  ropes  into  the  area  of  the  courtyard  where 
Jesus  was.  Our  Lord  not  only  healed  the  man  of 
his  palsy,  but  forgave  him  his  sins.  This  seems  to 
have  especially  provoked  certain  of  the  bystanders, 
who,  not  choosing  to  express  their  animosities  pub- 
licly, contented  themselves  with  ^'reasoning  in 
their  hearts.'* 

**And  when  he  entered  again  into  Capernaum 
after  some  days,  it  was  noised  that  he  was  in  the 
house.  And  many  w^ere  gathered  together,  so  that 
there  was  no  longer  room  for  them,  no,  not  even 
about  the  door:  and  he  spake  the  word  unto  them. 
And  they  come,  bringing  unto  him  a  man  sick  of 
the  palsy,  borne  of  four.  And  when  they  could 
not  come  nigh  unto  him  for  the  crowd,  they  un- 
covered the  roof  where  he  was:  and  when  they  had 
broken  it  up,  they  let  down  the  bed  whereon  the 
sick  of  the  palsy  lay.  And  Jesus  seeing  their  faith 
saith  unto  the  sick  of  the  palsy,  Son,  thy  sins  are 
forofiven." 

This  story  is  remarkable  for  the  exhibition  it 
makes:  (i)  Of  enterprise  in  bringing  a  helpless  soul 
to  the  Saviour:  how  many  ingenuities  there  are  for 
reaching  men  when  only  the  friends  around  them 
are  in  earnest;  (2)  of  the  intimate  connection  exist- 
ing between  sin  and  suffering:  our  Lord's  action  in 
bestowing  pardon  with  the  cure  was  strictly  logical ; 
(3)  of  the  great  advantage  it  is  to  any  man  to  have 
Christians  for  companions,  to  become  friends  in  his 


RKASONS   IN    RESERVE.  53 

need :  this  palsied  creature  was  healed  because  of 
the  faith  other  people  had;  (4)  of  the  force  of  mean 
motives  in  driving  men  to  reject  Christ :  these 
scribes  were  moved  by  arguments  which  they  cher- 
ished, but  concealed  from  sight. 

Upon  this  last  point  it  seems  worth  while  to 
dwell  for  a  little  while  just  by  itself.  Let  us  group 
the  illustrations  of  the  narrative  around  two  simple 
propositions  in  turn. 

I.  The  worst  opposition  which  Christians  have 
to  meet  in  offering  the  gospel  to  men  is  found  in 
the  mental  reservations  of  its  rejectors,  and  the  sul- 
len silence  of  their  hearts. 

I.  To  begin  with,  there  are  unspoken  objections 
which  influence,  if,  they  do  not  control,  one's  intel- 
lectual views.  Men  insist  that  there  are  discrepan- 
cies in  the  records  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments 
which  vitiate  their  truth,  and,  if  generally  known, 
would  mock  their  claim  to  exact  inspiration.  Other 
men  make  great  parade  in  private  over  difficulties 
in  doctrine,  and  challenge  attention  to  the  fact  that 
theologians  differ  in  relation  to  almost  all  the  car- 
dinal points  of  what  is  called  the  evangelical  sys- 
tem. Still  others  cavil  at  the  inconsistencies  of 
church-members,  and  rail  out  against  them  for 
hypocrisy,  if  only  they  can  manage  to  secure  a 
safe  and  credulous  audience  that  dares  not  con- 
tradict them.  Hints  and  inuuendoes  are  the  usual 
signs  of  this  disturbed  and  unwholesome  state  of 
mind. 

Where  do  the  young  men  of  the  present  day  ob- 
tain so  much  skeptical  information?     It  is  thrust 


54  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospei.. 

in  upon  them  by  the  public  press.  Doubts  drop 
down  like  loose  feathers  wherever  croaking  ravens 
are  wont  to  fly.  Evil  is  lodged  upon  mind  and  soul 
from  every  source.  I^ectures  are  reported  which 
would  never  have  had  an  audience  but  for  the 
penny-a-liner's  necessities.  And  sometimes  re- 
views of  public  speeches  insult  readers  with  blas- 
phemy. 

But  why  is  it  that  these  reasons  are  so  often 
held  in  reserve  ?  Why  does  the  man  preserve  his 
sullen  demeanor  without  a  w^ord?  (i)  Because 
he  is  not  exactly  certain  he  can  state  them:  it  is 
not  everybody  who  can  say  clearly  what  he  does 
not  believe;  (2)  because  he  feels  a  misgiving  that 
they  may  not  stand  when  some  one  a  little  more 
scholarly  gets  hold  of  them;  (3)  and  because  he 
suspects  that,  if  he  goes  so  far  in  his  small  infi- 
delity, he  really  will  have  to  go  farther  or  else  give 
it  up. 

2.  There  are  unconscious  prejudices  which 
arouse  one's  temper.  Some  persons  conceive  a 
violent  spite  at  what  they  assert  is  a  continuous 
rebuke  whenever  Christian  life  is  praised  or  com' 
mended.  This  is  not  a  new  thing  in  history. 
Classic  annals  tell  us  that  an  unlettered  country- 
man gave  his  vote  against  Aristides  at  the  ostra-' 
cism,  because,  as  he  frankly  said,  he  was  tired  of 
hearing  him  called  "The  Just."  Other  persons 
burn  with  imj)lacable  memories  of  indiscreet  zeal 
practised  upon  them  by  those  who  supposed  they 
were  dutifully  obeying  the  command,  "Go,  speak 
to  that  young  man."     They  recite  the  grievance  of 


REASONS   IX   RESERVE.  55 

revival  extravagances,  wliicli  tliey  deemed  ofTeii- 
sive  and  never  to  be  forgotten.  They  rehearse 
the  biographies  of  preachers  who  bullied  the  patient 
congregations,  and  then  ran  into  immorality  and 
deptorable  scandal.  They  plead  rashness  as  an  ex- 
cuse for  reserve. 

3.  There  are  unacknowledged  sins  which  sway 
one's  career.  Come  back  to  the  story  here  in 
Mark's  narrative.  "  But  there  were  certain  of  the 
scribes  sitting  there,  and  reasoning  in  their  hearts, 
Why  doth  this  man  thus  speak  ?  he  blasphemeth  : 
who  can  forgive  sins  but  one,  even  God?" 

Hear  the  comments  of  these  scribes  accusing  Je- 
sus of  blasphemy  !  Violent  clamors  for  moral  and 
theological  perfectness  are  raised  by  many  whose 
sole  aim  is  to  divert  attention  from  some  secret  in- 
dulo-ences  of  their  own.  These  people  reason  in 
their  hearts. 

Sometimes  in  modern  life  a  very  showy  conflict 
with  Satan  is  kept  up  before  the  public,  in  order 
to  conceal  the  fact  of  one's  friendship  with  him. 
It  reminds  us  of  plays  in  which  the  actors  person- 
ate the  devil  fencing  with  some  good  antagonist 
behind  the  footlights,  a  knight,  perhaps,  the  pink 
of  virtue,  battling  fiercely  with  the  demon  clad 
in  robe  of  fire.  No  one  engaged  for  his  soul  could 
appear  more  bravely  in  earnest.  But  we  are  struck 
with  a  certain  kind  of  wariness,  which  they  both 
show  in  their  hitting.  Sparks  fly  from  the  weap- 
pons,  but  blood  does  not  seem  to  be  drawn.  And 
if  afterwards  we  were  to  go  behind  the  scenes, 
there  we  should  find  those  high-tempered  combat- 


56 

ants  in  a  most  surprising  state  of  reconciliation; 
honorable  knight  and  fiery  devil  seated  in  a  friendly 
way  at  the  table. 

4.  There  results  an  unsubdued  will  sullenly 
closing  one's  lips.  Many  men  live  a  double  life  ; 
they  mean  to  be  courteous,  but  on  religious  mat- 
ters they  cultivate  a  cool,  proud  reserve.  It  often 
surprises  us  to  find  our  Christian  endeavors  so  in- 
effective with  apparently  kind,  open,  intelligent 
people. 

What  is  the  real  reason  ?  Because  the  heart  is 
what  governs,  and  logic  is  not  addressed  to  the 
heart.  Arguments  are  made  and  meant  for  the  in- 
tellect, and  lose  weight  in  the  tenuous  atmosphere 
of  the  feelings.  It  shows  no  difference  whether  we 
drop  down  feathers  or  dollars  through  the  vacuum 
of  an  air-pump. 

II.  Thus  we  reach  our  second  proposition:  All 
these  reasons  in  reserve  avail  nothing  to  men,  the 
moment  the  contest  is  seen  to  be,  as  it  always  is,  a 
contest  with  God,  and  not  man. 

I.  Look  at  the  facts  here;  let  us  read  over  the 
remaining  verses  together: 

**  And  straightway  Jesus,  perceiving  in  his  spirit 
that  they  so  reasoned  within  themselves,  saith  unto 
them,  Why  reason  ye  these  things  in  your  hearts  ? 
Whether  is  easier,  to  say  to  the  sick  of  the  palsy. 
Thy  sins  are  forgiven;  or  to  say,  Arise,  and  take 
up  thy  bed,  and  walk?  But  that  ye  may  know 
that  the  Son  of  man  hath  power  on  earth  to  forgive 
sin  (he  saith  to  the  sick  of  the  palsy),  I  say  unto 
thee,   Arise,   take   up  thy  bed,  and   go   unto    thy 


REASONS   IN   RKSKRVK.  57 

house.  And  he  arose,  and  straightway  took  np 
the  bed,  and  went  forth  before  them  all;  insomuch 
that  they  were  all  amazed,  and  glorified  God,  say- 
ing, We  never  saw  it  on  this  fashion." 

Jesus  understood  those  scribes  (i)  divinely:  he 
*'  perceived  in  his  spirit."  He  understood  them  (2) 
thoroughly:  he  saw  what  was  '*  within  themselves." 
He  understood  them  (3)  at  once;  note  that  old  word 
^'immediately."  God  knows  all  our  surmises  and 
suspicions. 

Jesus  peremptorily  challenged  those  scribes  in 
their  logic.  (i.)  He  announced  his  discovery. 
They  were  '"amasjed;"  literally,  thunderstruck. 
(2.)  He  accepted  their  condition.  They  looked  on 
while  he  healed  the  man  by  miracle.  (3.)  He  de- 
feated them  utterly.  We  read  that  ''they  all  glori- 
fied God." 

2.  Now  let  us  draw  a  few  final  inferences  from 
the  whole  story.  This  scene  is  repeated  every  day 
in  the  full  sight  of  a  patient  God.  Human  nature 
is  always  the  same  along  the  ages. 

(i.)  There  cannot  possibly  be  any  reasoning  in 
one's  heart  which  our  omniscient  Judge  is  not  able 
instantly  to  perceive  and  to  answer.  Once  a  French 
soldier  fell  asleep  on  his  post,  and  was  brought  up 
for  trial  by  court-martial.  The  first  witness  called 
was  the  Emperor  Napoleon.  "  I  was  visiting  the 
sentinels'  outposts,"  he  said;  "I  saw  this  soldier 
myself." 

(2.)  True  prudence  consists  in  outspoken  can- 
dor. "Come,  let  us  reason  together."  Some- 
times   objections   vanish   with   the    statement;    for 

3* 


58  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

they  seem  so  insignificant  when  expressed.  Mere 
articulation  of  difficulties  often  clears  them  of  con- 
fusion. 

(3.)  Sullen  reserve  surely  runs  to  swift  ruin. 
The  diflference  between  an  ignorant  prejudice  and  a 
willful  conceit  is  shown  in  this:  ignorance  stands 
with  its  back  to  the  sun,  and  so,  if  it  advances, 
moves  on  in  the  line  of  its  own  shadow  only  a  step 
deeper;  but  churlish  conceit  walks  straight  away 
into  a  forest  of  doubts,  till  its  own  shadow  is  dark- 
ened with  other  shadows  gloomier  still.  Hence, 
a  confessed  ignorance  is  altogether  more  hopeful  for 
good,  because  all  it  has  to  do  is  to  turn  to  the  light. 
Sullen  obstinacy  has  to  retrace  its  path,  and  so  jour- 
ney clear  back  to  where  it  started.  It  was  consid- 
erations of  this  sort  which  forced  the  bright  remark 
that  "an  ingenuous  intellect  is  often  better  than  an 
ingenious  one." 

(4.)  Reasons  in  reserve  have  really  nothing  to 
do  with  actual  life  or  eternal  prospects.  When  was 
it  discovered  that  one  man  is  relieved  from  the  obli- 
gation of  being  honest,  because  another  man  lies  ? 
Just  how  does  "  foreordination  "  or  the  *' Trinity," 
if  the  doctrines  are  true,  hinder  repentance  or  faith? 


HEEDFUI.   HEARING.  59 


VL 

HEEDFUL  HEARING. 

"If  any  man  have  ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear." — Mark  4:23. 

At  the  end  of  the  familiar  parable  of  the  sower 
our  Lord  seems  to  have  summed  up  all  its  meaning 
into  a  single  counsel.  ''  Take  heed  what  ye  hear  " 
is  the  form  in  which  it  appears  in  Mark's  Gospel; 
*'  Take  heed  how  ye  hear  "  is  the  record  of  Luke. 

I.  Let  us  seek  in  the  beginning  to  discriminate 
and  classify  the  ordinary  hearers  of  the  word  as 
they  show  themselves  in  the  sight  of  the  preacher. 

You  have  possibly  looked  down  from  a  hillside 
upon  a  forest-grove  in  the  country  and  seen  the 
wind  of  summer  stealing  over  the  tops  of  the  trees. 
You  may  have  marked  how  each  one  of  them  pre- 
serves its  own  individuality.  The  elm  bends,  the 
aspen  trembles,  the  willow  waves,  the  evergreen 
moans;  but  the  light-hearted  poplar  stands  up 
straight  and  stiff,  while  the  obstinate  oak  only  set- 
tles its  roots  the  deeper  and  erects  its  branches  for  a 
vigorous  resistance.  In  this  would  be  found  a  fair 
similitude  by  which  to  describe  an  ordinary  Chris- 
tian congregation  in  these  modern  times,  and  by 
which  to  discriminate  the  listeners  with  a  view  to 
their  appropriate  classification. 

It  may  never  have  occurred  to  some,  who  are  in 
the  habit  of  attendance  upon  divine  service  and 
gazing  unhindered  upon  the  conspicuous  speaker  iu 


6o  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEU 

the  pulpit,  that  he  sees  from  his  outlook  quite  as 
clearly  as  they  do  from  theirs.  If  one  who  can 
read  human  countenances  well  were  only  for  one 
Sabbath  to  have  a  seat  in  the  desk,  he  would  be 
struck  with  surprise  perhaps;  certainly  he  would 
gain  some  positively  new  ideas:  for  he  would  see 
all  conditions  of  men  represented.  He  would  be- 
hold moral  characteristics,  personal  peculiarities, 
and  professional  habits  most  evidently  displayed. 
Under  the  presentation  of  close-fitting"  truth  he 
would  discover  that  exceedingly  diverse  impres- 
sions are  produced  upon  different  hearers. 

I.  For  one  class,  he  would  be  sure  to  see  the 
listless  hearers.  He  might  discover  in  various  parts 
of  the  audience-room  those  whose  countenances 
would  defy  all  study.  They  are  perfect  blanks. 
No  more  life  appears  than  there  would  be  discov- 
ered in  a  gallery  of  statuary.  Some  will  be  asleep. 
Some  there  will  be  who  hear  the  sound  of  the 
words,  but  so  inattentively  and  unintelligently  that 
nothing  is  regarded  as  it  passes  their  ears.  The 
sentences  fall  on  their  organs  like  the  ordinary  tick- 
ing of  a  clock;  they  disturb  no  sensibility  whatso- 
ever. We  should  judge  that  they  attracted  no  atten- 
tion of  any  sort,  if  it  were  not  that  the  eyes  flash 
up  suddenly  with  an  eager  curiosity,  if  for  some 
reason  the  sound  happens  to  stop. 

It  is  by  no  means  needful  that  one  should  be  in. 
a  slumber  in  order  to  be  a  listless  hearer.  He  may 
keep  his  look  full  on  the  speaker,  and  yet  not  heed-, 
fully  receive  a  single  syllable  from  his  lips.  Now 
it  would  be  trifling  to  pause  here  and  rebuke  this 


HEEDFUI.   HEARING.  6l 

kind  of  inattention.  But  one  might  be  suffered  to 
say  that  it  is  not  fair  play  to  meet  any  preacher  in 
such  a  manner,  and  then  dispose  of  him  with  a 
hard  criticism  as  having  been  unusually  dull.  Who 
has  been  the  duller  of  the  two?  If  the  sermon  be 
a  good  one,  then  all  the  people  ought  to  attend  to  it 
that  nothing  be  lost.  If  it  be  a  poor  one,  they  cer- 
tainly ought  to  attend  to  it  the  more  closely,  or  they 
will  not  catch  even  its  excellent,  and  perhaps  re- 
deeming, quotations  from  somebody  else. 

2.  Next,  this  visitor  in  the  pulpit  would  notice 
the  criticising  hearers.  It  is  not  worth  while  just 
now  to  seem  to  refer  to  those  who  cavil  at  the  ideas 
presented,  or  find  fault  in  turn  with  the  preacher's 
gestures,  his  voice,  his  use  or  disuse  of  a  manu- 
script, his  reading  of  the  hymns,  his  management 
of  the  large  Bible,  or  the  mechanical  forms  of  his 
prayers.  These  are  all  minor  matters,  and  it  is 
generally  understood  now  that  ministers  are  willing 
that  people  shall  do  about  as  they  please  in  dealing 
with  them.  But  the  more  dangerous  habit  of  some 
is  to  lose  all  matter  in  mere  manner.  For  instance, 
a  strong  and  eloquent  appeal,  or  an  exhibition  of 
brilliant  imagination,  is  apt  to  excite  them.  List- 
ening intently,  they  go  away  pleased  with  what 
they  term  the  excellence  of  the  discourse.  Or  per- 
haps a  logical  man  with  a  theological  turn  plods 
through  his  half- hour  in  search  of  a  doctrine. 
They  listen  after  a  fashion;  they  believe  all  he 
says;  they  did  before;  but  still  they  are  not  happy; 
he  is  pronounced  dull  and  uninteresting.  So  it  is 
always  the  man  and  not  the  truth  which  is  taken 


6z  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

in.  The  message  he  has  brought  falls  to  the 
ground  dead,  pierced  in  a  hundred  places  by  the 
small  shot  of  a  mere  sporting  criticism. 

3.  Yet  a  third  class  might  be  singled  out,  the 
stispicioiis  hearers.  These  are  continually  on  the 
lookout,  not  exactly  in  our  times  for  heterodoxy, 
but  for  eccentricities.  They  are  afraid  the  preacher 
will  say  something  inconsistent  with  the  established 
views  they  cherish.  At  the  present  day  people  love 
beyond  everything  else  to  have  their  ministers  pro- 
claim authoritatively  from  the  pulpit  what  they 
believe  in  the  pews.  And  sometimes  they  are  anx- 
ious for  fear  he  is  on  the  verge  of  offering  some- 
thing else.  He  is  in  danger  of  touching  political 
issues,  or  he  will  oppose  evangelical  tent-work,  or 
he  will  not  come  out  strongly  enough  on  the  subject 
of  total  abstinence. 

Perhaps  this  is  natural;  but  it  strikes  one  some- 
times that  there  is  very  little  use  in  preaching  to 
those  whose  minds  are  made  up.  It  is  apparent 
that  there  are  men  and  women  who  settle  before- 
hand two  decisions  every  time  they  go  to  church: 
one  is,  that  certain  theoretic  or  practical  views 
ought  not  to  be  presented  from  the  pulpit;  the  other 
is,  that  they  are  going  to  be  now.  Time  never 
wears  away  their  solicitude  nor  diminishes  their 
feeling  of  prejudice  or  doubt.  They  sit  in  painful 
uncertainty  and  uneasiness  through  sermon  after 
sermon. 

A  single  remark  is  all  that  is  necessary  to  make 
here:  it  is  better  generally  to  listen  to  what  is  said 
rather  than  to  what  is  not;  and  it  is  always  safer  to 


HEEDFUL   HEARING.  6;^ 

remember  that  "It  will  be  time  enough  for  a  man 
to  decide  whether  he  will  bow  down  to  Nebuchad- 
nezzar's image  when  he  sees  the  servants  splitting 
the  wood  to  heat  the  fiery  furnace." 

4.  Then  there  is  a  fourth  class,  the  distribiUing 
hearers.  Some  most  devout  people  always  listen 
for  the  sake  of  the  rest  of  the  congregation.  They 
imagine  that  the  burden  of  applying  the  sermon  to 
those  at  whom  they  judge  it  is  directed  by  their 
minister  rests  wholly  upon  them.  They  would  be 
perfectly  willing  to  walk  right  up  after  service  to 
the  exact  individual,  and  say,  as  Nathan  did  to 
David,  "Thou  art  the  man!"  Or  perhaps  a  duty 
is  pressed  and  an  appeal  made.  These  persons  will 
specify  instantly  w^hat  somebody  else  ought  to  give 
or  to  do.  That  w^as  Sydney  Smith's  experience 
when  he  was  a  preacher.  He  said,  "  If  I  were  to 
declare  that  A  is  in  trouble,  B  would  instantly 
reply,  '  C  ought  to  go  and  help  him.'  " 

Just  let  every  hearer  think  to  himself  as  he 
plants  his  family  in  the  pew,  "This  discourse  is 
primarily  meant  for  me.  If  the  hopes  of  which  it 
speaks  may  be  legitimately  applied  to  my  comfort, 
I  will  receive  them  gratefully  and  joyfully  at  the 
hand  of  the  Lord;  if  the  dangers  of  which  it  speaks 
are  around  me,  I,  who  now  am  thinking  I  stand,  will 
take  heed  lest  I  fall;  if  the  duties  which  it  incul- 
cates are  ^uch  as  I  can  perform,  I  will  try  to  set 
about  them;  if  the  sins  it  represents  are -such  as  I 
commit,  I  will  pray  for  pardon;  and  so  may  God 
help  me  to-day  to  take  heed  how  and  what  I  hear!" 

II.   Let  us  seek  now,  in  the  second  jilace,  to  dis- 


64  STUDIES  IN   mark's   GOSPEIv. 

criminate  and  classify  the  ordinary  hearers  of  the 
^vord  as  they  appear  in  the  sight  of  the  world  at 
large. 

Here  comes  in  the  question  as  to  results  rather 
than  mere  behavior.  We  fall  back  upon  the  para- 
ble of  the  sower;  it  was  given  as  our  Saviour's 
illustration  of  the  effect  of  the  truth  as  it  is  thrown 
upon  human  hearts  like  seed  upon  difierent  soils. 

I.  To  begin  with,  there  are  the  wayside  hearers. 
Let  us  read  over  the  old  story  and  lay  alongside  of 
the  description  at  once  our  Lord's  interpretation: 

*' And  he  taught  them  many  things  by  parables, 
and  said  unto  them  in  his  doctrine.  Hearken:  Be- 
hold, there  went  out  a  sower  to  sow.  And  it  came 
to  pass  as  he  sowed,  some  fell  by  the  wayside,  and 
the  fowls  of  the  air  came  and  devoured  it  up. 
Know  ye  not  this  parable  ?  and  how  then  will  ye 
know  all  parables  ?  The  sower  soweth  the  word. 
And  these  are  they  by  the  wayside,  where  the  word 
is  sown;  but  when  they  have  heard,  Satan  cometh 
immediately  and  taketh  away  the  word  that  was 
sown  in  their  hearts." 

The  preacher  who  sows  successfully  is  accus- 
tomed to  choose  that  kind  of  seed  which  he  wisely 
judges  is  best  adapted  to  the  soil  where  he  is  to 
scatter  it.  Then  he  spreads  it  with  an  open  hand. 
But  the  hearts  of  some  of  his  hearers  have  been  so 
run  over  and  trampled  upon  by  evil  passions,  de- 
sires, and  prejudices,  that  they  have  beome  hard  as 
a  beaten  highway  which  stretches  along  by  the  side 
of  the  ploughed  land.  Truth  falls  at  the  first  only 
on  the  surface.     Perhaps,  if  it  were  allowed  to  lie 


IIKEDFUI.   HEARING.  C5 

there  even  for  a  brief  while,  it  might  fiud  its  way 
ill,  for  there  is  a  very  vigorous  vitality  in  God's 
utterances  to  men.  But  the  devil  is  on  the  watch ; 
he  comes  and  snatches  it  away,  and  then  the  path 
is  blank  and  barren  as  before,  and  the  labor  of  sow- 
ing is  lost. 

King  Agrippa  is  instanced  to  us  as  an  example. 
He  went  with  great  pomp  to  hear  the  apostle  Paul 
preach.  That  earnest  and  powerful  pleader  laid  the 
truth  on  his  heart  as  if  he  would  plough  and  har- 
row it  into  his  life.  But  the  devil's  birds  were  near 
to  pick  up  the  seed.  Pride  came  with  her  glitter- 
ing pinions  and  chirped  in  his  ear,  "Thou  art  a 
kinof,  but  who  is  this  tent-maker?"  lyust  croaked 
behind  pride  and  had  something  to  say  about  giv- 
ing up  Berenice.  So  they  came  one  after  another, 
picked  up  the  grain,  and  flew  away. 

2.  Then  our  Lord  mentions  the  stony-ground 
hearers,  and  afterwards  tells  his  disciples  what  he 
means: 

*'And  some  fell  on  stony  ground,  where  it  had 
not  much  earth;  and  immediately  it  sprang  up, 
because  it  had  no  depth  of  earth ;  but  when  the  sun 
was  up  it  was  scorched;  and  because  it  had  no  root 
it  withered  away.  And  these  are  they  likewise 
which  are  sown  on  stony  ground,  who,  when  they 
have  heard  the  word,  immediately  receive  it  with 
gladness,  and  have  no  root  in  themselves,  and  so 
endure  but  for  a  time;  afterward,  when  affliction  or 
persecution  ariseth  for  the  word's  sake,  immedi- 
ately they  are  offended." 

From  the  very  fact  of  the  soil's  meagreness,  in 

StuaifS  ill  Miuk'8Corti>cI. 


66 

sucli  cases  tlie  growth  of  grain  seems  always  aston- 
ishingly rapid,  for  the  earth  is  all  mould,  and  the 
rock  beneath  it  keeps  the  heat  of  the  noontide 
longer.  Shallow  hearts  are  generally  warm  and 
full  of  impulse.  Let  the  wind  now  blow  and  the 
rains  fall  and  the  hot  sun  shine,  and  if  the  ground 
were  only  deep  and  solid  the  very  blast  would  settle 
the  roots  more  firmly,  the  showers  would  stay  to 
give  permanent  nourishment,  and  the  strong  light 
would  develop  the  thrifty  life  faster.  But  this  stony 
ground  has  only  a  deceitful  surface-soil ;  so  the  wind 
loosens,  the  rain  washes,  the  sun  withers.  Thus  it 
comes  about  that  sometimes  the  best  helps  hinder. 

Paul  had  some  of  these  hearers  among  his  aud- 
iences in  Galatia:  "  Ye  did  run  well;  what  did  hin- 
der you?'*  Christ  had  some  among  his  followers  in 
Galilee;  he  gave  them  deeper  doctrines  than  they 
could  shelter  or  support  in  their  merely  superficial 
experience:  "  From  that  time  many  of  his  disciples 
went  back,  and  walked  no  more  with  him." 

3.  Next,  our  Lord  classifies  the  thorn-cJiokcd 
hearers,  A  peculiar  kind  of  thorn  in  that  country 
grows  suddenly  and  rankly,  and  seems  to  love  the 
borders  of  wheat-fields.  The  farmers  cut  away  the 
too  prolific  stalks,  but  the  roots  put  forth  fresh 
shoots  at  once  with  a  strangling  and  tangling  vio- 
lence that  crowds  everything  else  down. 

**And  some  fell  among  thorns,  and  the  thorns 
grew  up  and  choked  it,  and  it  yielded  no  fruit. 
And  these  are  they  which  are  sown  among  thorns; 
such  as  hear  the  word,  and  the  cares  of  this  world, 
and  the  deceitfulness  of  riches,  and  the  lusts  of  other 


HEEDFUI.    IIKARING.  6/ 

things,  entering  in,  choke  the  word,  and  it  becom- 
eth  unfruitful.  And  he  said  unto  them,  he  that 
hath  ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear." 

Perhaps  this  class  of  hearers  is  more  widely 
represented  in  our  times  than  any  one  of  the  others. 
A  sort  of  religious  impression  is  very  readily  pro- 
duced in  ordinary  promiscuous  assemblies.  Some 
men  and  more  women  are  exceedingly  sympathetic 
and  emotional  creatures.  It  is  a  sight  often  to  be 
seen,  that  of  a  listener  weeping  and  agitated  under 
the  faithful  presentation  of  the  truth.  Men  become 
alarmed  for  their  future  safety.  Generous  souls 
sometimes  feel  the  baseness  of  their  ingratitude  to 
God.  These  go  away  from  the  sanctuary  full  of 
solemn  resolutions.  Thoughts  of  sober  life,  of  prac- 
tical duty,  of  pious  endeavor,  of  heavenly  love, 
settle  upon  their  souls.  But  the  morning  of  the 
busy  week  of  worldly  work  dawns,  and  before  the 
noon  comes  they  are  just  as  hard  and  just  as  per- 
verse as  ever.  Oh,  how  many  Sundays  have  ac- 
tually been  slain  by  the  wicked  Mondays  that  fol- 
lowed them! 

Demas'  history  has  been  offered  us  for  an  illus- 
tration of  this  short-lived  sort  of  emotion,  in  one 
melancholy  sentence  of  Paul's  Second  Epistle  to 
Timothy:  "  Demas  hath  forsaken  me,  having  loved 
this  present  world,  and  has  departed  unto  Thes- 
salonica."  Perhaps  the  saddest  of  all  experi- 
ences we  have  to  meet  is  found  in  this  watchine 
of  people  who  promise  so  much,  but  who  come  to  so 
little. 

4.  Then  our  Saviour  speaks  of  the  good-groimd 


68  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospel. 

hearers  in  the  parable.  But  for  such,  seed-sowhig 
would  be  a  failure. 

**  And  other  fell  on  good  ground,  and  did  yield 
fruit  that  did  spring  up,  and  increased,  and  brought 
forth,  some  thirty,  and  some  sixty,  and  some  a  hun- 
dred. And  these  are  they  which  are  sown  on  good 
ground;  such  as  hear  the  word,  and  receive  it,  and 
bring  forth  fruit,  some  thirty-fold,  some  sixty,  and 
some  a  hundred. ' ' 

The  great  source  of  comfort  to  a  preacher  of  the 
gospel  is  found  here;  the  principal  field  of  his  labor 
is  good  ground.  He  is  sustained  by  two  promises, 
given  him  in  the  Bible  long  ago. 

One  is  about  the  seed  he  sows:  *'  For  as  the  rain 
Cometh  down,  and  the  snow  from  heaven,  and  re- 
turneth  not  thither,  but  watereth  the  earth,  and 
inaketh  it  bring  forth  and  bud,  that  it  may  give 
seed  to  the  sower  and  bread  to  the  eater:  so  shall 
my  word  be  that  goeth  forth  out  of  my  mouth:  it 
shall  not  return  unto  me  void,  but  it  shall  accom- 
plish that  which  I  please,  and  it  shall  prosper  in  the 
//////^whereto  I  sent  it.'* 

The  other  is  about  the  sower:  *'  They  that  sow 
in  tears  shall  reap  in  joy.  He  that  goeth  forth  and 
weepeth,  bearing  precious  seed,  shall  doubtless 
come  again  with  rejoicing,  bringing  his  sheaves 
^uiih  Jiim,'^'^ 

HI.  Let  us,  now  in  the  third  place,  look  upon 
those  who  hear  the  word,  as  they  appear  in  the 
sight  of  God. 

Men  are  very  much  mistaken,  if  they  suppose 
that  these  Sunday  services  are  mere  entertainments 


IIEEDFUI.   IIKARING.  69 

Avitli  wliicli  to  wlillc  away  an  unoccupied  hour. 
Very  vivid  and  very  graphic  are  the  words  in  the 
Fourteenth  Psahn:  "The  Lord  looked  down  from 
heaven  upon  the  children  of  men,  to  see  if  there 
were  any  tliat  did  understand,  and  seek  God.'^  He 
looks  down  now  upon  every  gathered  audience  of 
men;  and  he  pronounces  upon  their  forms  of  listen- 
ing to  the  truth. 

Suffer  me,  in  closing  this  exposition,  to  restate  a 
few  of  the  simple  principles  which  lie  at  the  basis 
of  all  duty  in  listening  to  the  truth,  and  which  will 
show  how  God  himself  considers  an  assemblage 
gathered  for  his  worship,  and  what  he  thinks  of 
the  relations  between  the  pulpit  and  the  pews  in  a 
modern  comjrecration. 

I.  The  first  of  these  is  this:  a  preacher  of  the  gos- 
pel is  ail  atcthorized  messenger  froi7t  Jieaven  to  vien. 

He  is  not,  therefore,  to  be  reckoned  as  a  mere 
platform-man,  delivering  his  own  solitary  views, 
and  whose  utterances  are  to  be  registered  and 
weighed  according  to  his  eloquence  or  ability  alone. 
"Now  then  we  are  ambassadors  for  Christ,  as 
though  God  did  beseech  you  by  us;  we  pray  you  in 
Christ's  stead,  be  ye  reconciled  to  God."  It  is 
neither  intelligent  nor  apt  for  us  to  say  of  a  min- 
ister in  the  pulpit  (if  he  be  really  about  his  busi- 
ness) "He  thinks  so  and  so."  For  it  is  not  his 
thoughts  he  is  offering  for  general  approval  or  con- 
sideration, but  God's  thoughts  to  men.  The  same 
mistake  was  made  more  than  two  thousand  years 
ago,  and  then  the  Lord  in  person  took  occasion  to 
speak  out;  this  is  what  he  said  to  Bzekiel: 


70  STUDIES    IN   mark's   GOSPEIv. 

"Also,  thou  son  of  man,  the  children  of  Ihy 
people  still  are  talking  against  thee  by  the  walls 
and  in  the  doors  of  the  houses,  and  speak  one  to  an- 
other, every  one  to  his  brother,  saying,  Come,  I 
pray  you,  and  hear  what  is  the  word  that  cometh 
forth  from  the  Lord.  And  they  come  unto  thee  as 
the  people  cometh,  and  they  sit  beside  thee  as  my 
people,  and  they  hear  thy  words,  but  they  will  not 
do  them  ;  for  with  their  mouth  they  show  much 
love,  but  their  heart  goeth  after  their  covetousness. 
And  lo,  thou  art  unto  them  as  a  very  lovely  song  of 
one  that  hath  a  pleasant  voice,  and  can  play  well  on 
an  instrument:  for  they  hear  thy  words,  but  they  do 
them  not.  And  when  this  cometh  to  pass,  (lo,  it 
wall  come,)  then  shall  they  know  that  a  prophet 
hath  been  among  them." 

2.  Another  principle,  just  as  simple  as  this, 
needs  to  be  put  alongside  of  it:  tJie  ministci''^ s  mes- 
sage is  to  be  received  fj'om  the  Old  and  New  Testament 
precisely  as  if  God  spoke  to  men  now. 

The  Bible  is  cosmopolitan  and  perennial.  It 
never  grows  antiquated  or  obsolete.  '*  Though  we, 
or  an  angel  from  heaven,  preach  any  other  gospel, 
let  him  be  accursed:"  an  inspired  apostle  said  that! 
God's  revelation  to  men  admits  and  counsels  that 
all  intelligent  listeners  are  to  try  the  doctrine  to  see 
that  it  comes  from  above;  but  nowhere  does  it  say 
that  any  one  is  to  try  the  preachers  beyond  this  one 
line — are  they  men  of  God  ? 

3.  Yet  a  third  principle  is  to  be  mentioned  with 
the  others:  the  constituted  method  tinder  the  gospel  for 
conimnnication  hctiveen  earth  and  heaven  is  preaching. 


HEEDFUL  HEARING.  71 

Then,  ill  heaven's  name,  let  Christian  men  and 
women  pray  more  for  the  preachers!  In  early  ages, 
the  Almighty  spoke  by  visions  and  dreams;  we  do 
not  understand  that  he  ever  does  this  now  ;  he 
speaks  by  his  word.  He  has  chosen  living  men  to 
go  to  men;  he  has  given  them  a  book;  he  has  or- 
ganized around  them  a  church,  which  is  Christ's 
body,  the  fulness  of  him  who  filleth  all  in  alL 
*^  Faith  cometli  by  hearing,  and  hearing  by  the 
Word  of  God."  If  we  use  the  press,  then  the  press 
must  preach.  If  we  use  music,  then  the  singers 
must  preach.  Eleven  times  in  succession  does 
Jeremiah  repeat  the  one  declaration  from  God  him- 
self: "I  have  even  sent  unto  you  all  my  servants 
the  prophets,  daily  rising  up  early  and  sending 
them." 

"Take  heed,  therefore,  how  ye  hear."  "Keep 
thy  foot  when  thou  goest  to  the  house  of  God,  and 
be  more  ready  to  hear  than  to  give  the  sacrifice  of 
fools;  for  they  consider  not  that  they  do  evil.  Be 
not  rash  with  thy  mouth,  and  let  not  thy  heart  be 
hasty  to  utter  anything  before  God;  for  God  is  in 
heaven  and  thou  upon  earth,  therefore  let  thy  words 
be  few. " 


73  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospe;!.. 

VII. 
THE  HOME  MISSION. 

"  HowBEiT  Jesus  suffered  him  not,  but  saith  unto  him,  Go 

HOME  TO  THV  FRIENDS,  AND  TELL  THEM  HOW  GREAT  THINGS 

THE  Lord  hath  done  for  thee,  and  hath  had  compassion 
ON  thee," — Mark  5 :  19. 

The  first  preacher  of  the  gospel  in  the  town  of 
Sychar,  we  remember,  was  a  suddenly  converted 
woman,  concerning  whom  very  hard  stories  had 
formerly  been  told.  She  had  been  fortunate 
enough  to  meet  Jesus  out  near  Jacob's  well,  and 
had  received  his  command  instantly  upon  her 
conversion,  *'Go,  call  thy  husband,  and  come 
hither."  She  obeyed;  and  the  record  informs  us 
that  she  became  the  instrument  of  spiritual  renewal 
to  more  people  than  any  one  else  clear  down  to  the 
day  of  Pentecost. 

This  woman  may  be  considered  the  earliest 
home  missionary  in  history;  for  she  went  with  the 
gospel  to  her  own  nation,  to  her  own  city,  to  her 
own  family,  to  her  own  husband. 

In  the  same  way  it  might  be  said  that  the  apos- 
tle Andrew  took  his  first  lesson  in  foreign-mission 
work  from  a  single  experience  in  the  home  field; 
for  the  moment  he  was  himself  converted  to  Christ, 
he  started  off  on  the  errand  of  finding  his  own  bro- 
ther Simon.  His  relationship  to  this  man  gave  him 
a  peculiar  hold  upon  him  for  good  influence.  The 
family  organization  has  been  constructed  for  special 


THE    HOME    MISSION.  73 

duty,  and  so  stands  forever  charged  with  its  per- 
formance. It  is  designed  to  supplement  and  inten- 
sify the  energies  of  the  visible  church.  To  win 
towards  that  which  is  better,  and  to  warn  away 
from  that  which  is  worse,  is  one  of  the  sweetest  and 
tenderest  offices. 

This  reaches  farther  than  just  to  the  relations  of 
children  and  parents.  Pilate's  wife  was  impelled 
by  her  suffering  and  solicitude  to  go  with  advice  to 
him,  even  when  he  was  on  the  judgment-seat,  that 
he  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  just  man  he  was 
going  to  crucify;  she  would  have  saved  her  hus- 
band, if  he  had  only  listened  to  her  on  the  very 
verge  of  his  crime.  Our  home  influences  are' often 
the  most  powerful  forces  in  the  moulding  and  fixing 
of  our  lives  for  this  world  and  that  to  come. 

In  one  sense,  surely,  the  home  field  is  better  than 
the  foreign;  it  is  nearer,  to  begin  with,  and  then 
everybody  knows  the  language  at  once.  Men  and 
women  are  needed  everywhere,  but  their  own  fam- 
ilies around  them  sometimes  afford  opportunities 
of  usefulness  equal  to  any  offered  in  Ooroomiah  or 
Japan. 

Now  this  line  of  remark  is  started  by  a  single 
verse  put  on  record  at  the  end  of  the  story  of  the 
demoniac,  who  was  cured  by  Jesus  and  restored  to 
his  right  mind.  This  man  wanted  to  link  his  lot 
at  once  with  Jesus'  work,  and  go  around  with  him. 
''Howbeit  Jesus  suffered  him.  not,  but  saith  unto 
him.  Go  home  to  thy  friends,  and  tell  them  how 
great  things  the  Lord  hath  done  for  thee,  and  hath 
had  compassion  on  thee."     This  direction  is  made 

4 


74  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospel. 

even  more  specific  in  Luke's  narrative,  where  the 
word  "house"  is  employed.  The  man's  services 
of  affectionate  gratitude  are  acknowledged  and  ac- 
cepted; but  he  is  instantly  assigned  to  the  home 
field,  and  cheerfully  departs  to  his  work. 

In  the  story  of  Christ's  healing  of  the  leper  we 
have  observed  that  he  gave  to  that  unfortunate 
creature,  now  fortunate  indeed  in  that  he  was 
cured,  precisely  the  opposite  advice.  He  went 
even  further  than  this,  and  laid  upon  him  a  posi- 
tive prohibition:  "And  he  straitly  charged  him, 
and  forthwith  sent  him  away;  and  saith  unto  him, 
See  thou  say  nothing  to  any  man;  but  go  thy  way, 
show  thyself  to  the  priest,  and  offer  for  thy  cleans- 
ing those  things  which  Moses  commanded,  for  a 
testimony  imto  them.  But  he  went  out,  and  began 
to  publish  it  much,  and  to  blaze  abroad  the  matter, 
insomuch  that  Jesus  could  no  more  openly  enter 
into  the  city,  but  was  without  in  desert  places:  and 
they  came  to  him  from  every  quarter." 

The  commentaries  are  full  of  attempts  to  render 
the  actions  of  the  Saviour  consistent;  some  of  the 
efforts  are  very  laborious;  really,  the  most  common- 
place is  the  best. 

"Our  Lord  took  different  methods  of  dealing 
with  different  patients  whom  he  healed.  On  some 
he  laid  the  injunction  of  silence;  others  he  allowed 
to  spread  the  news  of  their  cures  as  being  witnesses 
of  his  power  and  goodness.  He  took,  we  cannot 
doubt,  the  circumstances  of  the  country  where  the 
miracle  was  wrought  into  account;  as  well  as  what 
was  expedient  for  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  for  the 


THE    HOME   MISSION.  75 

person  licaled.  It  was  not  enough  for  the  man  to 
tell  his  friends  at  home  what  great  things  the  Lord, 
or  God,  had  wrought  for  him  through  Jesus,  but 
how  Jesus  had  mercy  on  him.  By  dwelling  on  the 
first  he  might  become  self-important,  but  would  be 
kept  liumbled  by  speaking  of  the  compassion  of 
Jesus.  We  seem  to  perceive  that  our  Lord  was 
willing  to  trust  him  as  a  messenger  to  go  before  his 
face,  and  there  was  probably  a  germ  of  spiritual 
life  implanted  in  him." 

It  is  set  down  among  eastern  proverbs  that 
whenever  a  person  gets  in  a  hurry  he  is  sure  to 
take  a  roundabout  way.  Certainly,  so  much  as 
this  is  true,  "he  that  believeth  shall  not  be  con- 
founded," because  he  "shall  not  make  haste." 
Whoever  expects  to  attain  to  a  height  of  showy 
endeavor  will  have  to  begin  with  souls  which  are 
close  beside  him  and  within  his  reach.  If  he  finds 
success  there,  perhaps  he  will  be  satisfied  to  work 
on,  and  just  leave  his  ambition  for  showy  fields  to 
others. 

It  is  pitiful  to  see  a  grown-up  man  sighing  for 
the  unattainable  and  the  dim,  flattening  his  anx- 
ious forehead  against  the  window-pane  in  senti- 
mental sadness,  half  visionary  and  half  peevish, 
because  the  churches  will  not  start  a  fresh  sta- 
tion for  him  among  the  tropical  islands,  so  far, 
oh!  so  far  away,  where  his  wistful  eyes  seem  to 
see  the  waving  palms,  while,  close  beside  him  at 
the  moment,  waits  a  soul  hungry  for  the  gospel,  a 
soul  whose  sensibilities  would  be  stirred  to  their 
very  depths  just  to  hear  him  speak  for  Christ.     An 


76 

aged  father,  sitting  in  his  chair  there,  thoroughly 
accessible;  a  godless  sister,  confessedly  absorbed 
in  frivolity  and  fashion,  yet  herself  worthy  of 
better  things;  a  worldly  brother,  immersed  in 
business  and  distracted  with  care;  a  prayerless 
mother,  an  unconverted  servant,  a  willful  and  un- 
disciplined child;  are  not  these  as  welcome  for  an 
enterprise  of  faith  and  supplication  as  Bulgarians 
or  Zulus?  Think  of  a  conversion  occurring  under 
our  own  roof ! 

There  may  not  be  so  much  conspicuousness, 
and  there  never  is  likely  to  be  so  much  romance, 
in  the  work  of  teaching  one's  young  brother  or  sis- 
ter as  in  takino^  a  tract-district  or  manao:inQf  a  de- 
partment  in  a  reform  school;  but  often  more  good 
can  be  done  thus.  At  any  rate,  a  more  melancholy 
spectacle  cannot  be  found  than  that  presented  by  a 
living  Christian  wasting  his  time  and  energy  in 
looking  up  work  far  away  in  this  world  when  so 
much  is  to  be  discovered  lying  directly  under  his 
eyes. 

Why  do  not  all  perceive  this  and  learn  the  les- 
son which  our  Lord  taught  that  demoniac  out  of 
whom  he  cast  the  legion  of  devils  ?  Most  of  us 
have  read  in  the  "Pilgrim's  Progress"  about  the 
man  with  the  muckrake,  who  at  last  had  reached 
such  a  pass,  with  searching  for  straws  and  sticks 
and  dust,  that,  as  Bunyan  tells  us,  he  could  look  no 
way  but  downwards.  Might  there  not  be  a  profita- 
ble picture  drawn  of  those  in  our  day  whose  eyes, 
with  long  indulgence  of  dreamy  gating  into  the 
clouds,  have  become  unable  to  look  any  way  but 


TIIK   HOME   MISSION.  ^-J 

upwards,  quite  across  over  the  heads  of  all  their 
proper  duties  standing  directly  before  them  ? 

The  family  organization  is  designed  to  afford 
manifest  assistance  in  the  conversion  of  souls.  First 
obligation  lies  for  us  all  just  here.  No  apology  of 
zeal  exhausted  elsewhere  will  be  accepted  for  de- 
liberate rejection  of  this.  That  will  be  a  .sor- 
rowful wail  to  be  lifted  by-and-by,  no  matter  even 
if  outside  toil  has  in  some  measure  hindered  vigi- 
lance of  the  household:  ^'  They  made  me  the  keeper 
of  the  vineyards ;  mine  own  vineyard  have  I  not 
kept." 

But  now  arises  the  practical  question:  What  can 
one  do  in  bringing  the  home  ones  into  a  religious 
life?  This  man  here  in  the  story  of  the  miracle  was 
commanded  to  go  home  and  tell  what  the  Lord  had 
done  for  him.  "7>//  them  how  great  things  the  Lord 
hath  done  for  theey  That  was  what  David  did: 
*'Come  and  hear,  all  ye  that  fear  God,  and  I  will 
declare  what  he  hath  done  for  my  soul."  That 
was  what  Hezekiah  did:  "The  Lord  was  ready  to 
save  me;  therefore  we  will  sing  my  songs  to  the 
stringed  instruments  all  the  days  of  our  life  in  the 
house  of  the  Lord."  That  was  what  Nebuchad- 
nezzar did:  "I  thought  it  good  to  show  the  signs 
and  wonders  that  the  high  God  hath  wrought  to- 
ward me."  This  was  exactly  what  the  Samar- 
itan woman  did.  If  we  read  the  story  of  Simon 
Peter's  conversion  carefully,  we  shall  find  that 
Andrew  did  two  things  that  morning  after  his 
own  interview  with  the  Messiah  :  sroinQf  immedi- 
ately  to  find  his  brother,  he  first  taught  him,  and 


78  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospel. 

tlieu  lie  "brought"  lilm.  Instruction  first,  then 
persuasion. 

That  Christian  worker  will  mistake  the  position 
seriously  who  supposes  that  all  w^hich  his  fellow- 
men  need  is  mere  information  of  a  Saviour  oppor- 
tunely arrived  from  heaven  and  now  proffering 
pardon  for  their  sins.  Wilfulness  is  too  firmly 
entrenched  in  the  city  of  Mansoul  to  yield  to  a  sim- 
ple herald's  blowing  of  his  trumpet  on  the  outside 
of  the  wall.  Very  many  are  "hearers  only"  of 
the  word,  who  are  not  ready  to  become  "doers" 
also,  till  after  something  like  a  siege  has  begun  to 
be  felt  and  the  regular  approaches  and  the  heavy 
guns  are  seen. 

The  human  soul  needs  truth  more  than  argu- 
ment, personal  sympathy  more  than  exegesis,  a 
Redeemer  more  than  a  IMessiah,  a  radical  right- 
eousness more  than  a  mere  pattern  for  conduct.  So 
on  its  own  part,  what  it  has  to  render  is  penitence 
before  adhesion,  confession  rather  than  consecra- 
tion, admission  of  guilt  and  imploring  of  forgive- 
ness as  the  concomitant  of  faith. 

Hence  there  will  be  found  as  much  necessity  for 
strenuous  energy  of  personal  influence  in  some  cases 
as  for  clear  utterances  of  truth.  Many  a  young 
man  has  gone  home  from  a  public  service  in  such  a 
mood  of  mind  as  that,  helped,  he  might  have  been 
converted  the  same  hour;  and  hindered,  might  have 
gone  down  into  the  utter  night. 

No;  what  we  have  called  "the  home  mission'* 
includes  mothers'  prayers  and  fathers'  counsels,  as 
well  as  a  sister's  winninq:  and  a  brother's  brino^inof 


TIIK   HOME   MISSION.  79 

to  Jesus.  Religious  training  is  of  inestimable 
worth.  Home  influences  for  the  right  are  one  of 
our  most  priceless  of  privileges.  We  cannot  help 
hoping,  as  we  leave  this  most  pathetic  story,  that 
this  poor  demoniac,  now  sitting  at  Jesus'  feet, 
brought  his  whole  family  to  the  Master. 

Simon  Peter  told  Cornelius  and  those  who  were 
with  him  that  one  of  the  chief  characteristics  of 
Jesus  Christ's  career  was  found  in  the  fact  that  he 
*' went  about  doing  good;  for  God  was  with  him." 
Out  of  that  expression  has  come  one  of  our  stock 
exhortations  in  conference  meetings  and  public 
addresses. 

Once,  when  our  old  pastor  in  Vermont  gave  out 
this  verse  in  the  Acts  for  his  text,  I  listened  with 
much  care,  being  a  young  man  then  and  looking 
forward  to  the  ministry.  Across  these  forty  years 
now  I  can  recall  only  the  first  head  of  his  sermon. 
"To  begin  with,"  said  he,  *'a  Christian,  in  order 
to  go  about  and  do  good,  must  go  abotit  and  do  no 
harmy  That  is  certainly  a  prime  condition  of  all 
religious  serviceableness  at  the  present  day.  To 
keep  going  around  without  hurting  anybody  is  as 
essential  to  piety  as  it  is  to  an  electric  motor  or  a 
buzz-saw.  The  word  "  usefulness  "  does  not  occur 
in  the  Bible;  but  mention  is  often  made  of  "tem- 
perance" and  of  "moderation."  An  incessant 
activity,  which  comes  to  no  safe  or  profitable  end, 
only  reminds  one  of  Carlyle's  quaint  description  of 
a  balky  horse:  "all  move  and  no  go." 

My  greatest  discouragement  has  always  been 
with  those  busy  creatures  who  use  up  most  of  their 


8o  STUDIES    IN    mark's   GOSPEI.. 

time  and  force  in  seeking  out  spheres  of  effort  for 
which  they  are  under  profoundest  conviction  they 
have  no  calling.  Sunday-school  classes?  "Oh, 
no;  never  could  get  on  with  children."  Tract- 
distribution?  "No;  the  embarrassment  of  a  natu- 
rally timid  constitution  would  forbid  that."  Pub- 
lic prayer  and  social  exhortation?  "No;  want  of 
fluency  in  utterance  would  hinder,  and  perhaps 
experience  would  prove  rather  thin  for  edifica- 
tion." Charity  work?  "No;  too  much  sensibil- 
ity; poverty,  pain,  wretchedness  make  one  sick, 
you  know."  Thus  they  dispose  of  the  entire  round 
of  duty,  and  feel  a  solemn  sense  of  satisfaction  in 
having  shown  that  they  have  no  gift  for  anything 
whatever. 

Job,  if  he  had  happened  to  run  across  a  few 
of  these  modern  believers  in  his  day,  would  have 
had  no  difficulty  surely  in  filling  his  "mouth  with 
arguments"  by  merely  picking  up  the  crumbs  of 
objection  which  would  roll  off  from  the  edges  of 
unnecessary  discussion.  Of  all  spiritual  exercises 
known  to  man,  this  ceaseless  reiteration  of  reasons 
for  going  about  and  doing  nothing  is  certainly  the 
poorest. 

We  may  not  all  be  called  to  go  on  a  foreign 
mission  to  China  nor  on  a  domestic  mission  to 
Dakota;  we  might  as  well  let  the  consideration  of 
"divine  calls"  alone  till  the  calls  come.  What 
we  can  do  now,  every  one,  is  to  seek  to  comfort 
and  to  lift,  to  convert  and  to  save,  the  soul  that 
stands  next  to  us.  Christ  did  that,  and  so  "God 
was  with  him." 


THD  home:  mission.  8i' 

In  all  effective  Christian  effort  what  is  wanted 
is  some  small  measure  of  the  same  enthusiasm  that 
we  have  in  our  mystic  dreams  to  be  put  into  our 
prosaic  duties.  Once,  when  a  company  of  tourists 
were  on  board  of  a  BunQ:ao:uno:a  Indiaman,  straig^ht 
out  at  sea,  not  far  from  Ceylon,  the  conversation 
commenced  concerning  the  familiar  missionary 
hymn  ;  this  soon  ran  into  dispute  as  to  whether 
the  poetic  odor — "  the  spicy  breesjes" — of  the  lyric 
could  be  recognized  miles  off  the  island.  One  old 
traveller  slipped  quietly  up  to  the  deck  and  rubbed 
a  little  gracious  anointing  of  cinnamon  oil  over  the 
hammock  nettings  on  the  weather  side.  And  not 
long  afterward,  when  the  romantic  landsmen  came 
up  for  their  rest  from  heat  and  dispute,  there  arose 
cries  of  deepest  satisfaction  from  those  who  had 
been  contending,  with  their  arguments,  for  what 
was  now  evidenced  by  the  smell. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  go  to  Ceylon  in  order  to 
find  souls  to  save.  Prayerful  ingenuity  can  furnish 
cinnamon  perfume  this  side  of  the  Mediterranean, 
if  one  has  the  grand  love  of  Christ  in  his  heart 
which  makes  all  labor  lovely. 

Our  study  is  ended  and  our  instruction  closes 
where  it  began:  "Go  to  thy  house  unto  thy  friends, 
and  tell  them  how  great  things  the  Lord  hath  done 
for  thee,  and  how  he  had  mercy  on  thee.  And  he 
went  his  way,  and  began  to  publish  in  Decapolis 
how  great  things  Jesus  had  done  for  him:  and  all 
men  did  marvel.'* 


studies  in  Mark's  Gospel.  A* 


82 


VIII. 
*'WHO  TOUCHED  ME?^ 

"  For  she  said,  if  I  may  touch  but  his  clothes,  I  shall  be 
WHOLE." — Mark  5:28. 

It  would  seem  fair  to  say  that  whatever  belongs 
to  a  life  is  appropriate  to  put  into  a  biography. 
Especially  true  would  such  a  statement  be,  when 
made  concerning  a  man  like  Simon  Peter.  For, 
at  forty  years  old,  this  fisherman  had  to  be  recon- 
structed from  a  Galilean  peasant  into  a  Christian 
apostle;  and  the  transitions  needed  were  so  rapid  that 
our  imagination  is  fairly  arrested  with  the  details 
of  the  educational  process.  The  influences  which 
moulded  an  uncouth  disposition  like  his,  the  occa- 
sions which  disciplined  that  temper  of  his,  the  in- 
cidents which  instructed  his  mind,  are  all  of  singu- 
lar and  abiding  interest,  and  may  be  studied  at 
length. 

Now  this  story  of  the  woman  healed  in  answer 
to  her  touch  upon  the  hem  of  Jesus'  garment,  as  a 
mere  matter  of  fact,  is  a  chapter  in  Christ's  life. 
But  Simon  Peter  w^as  present,  and  took  a  not  very 
creditable  part  in  the  conversation ;  he  also  ob- 
served all  the  details  of  the  miraculous  transaction ; 
and  there  is  reason  to  conclude,  from  a  cautious 
study  of  his  active  life  in  some  subsequent  years, 
,that  he  received  at  this  time  certain  impressions 
which  powerfully  swayed  his  entire  public  career. 


*'WIIO  TOUCHED   ME?"  83 

So  we  may  as  well  note  a  few  lessons  that  lie  would 
be  sure  to  catch,  and  put  them  on  record. 

I.  First  of  all,  he  learned  that  a  close  follower  of 
Christ  Jesus  must  in  doing  good  be  no  respecter  of 
persojts. 

An  unfortunate  female  is  introduced  suddenly 
into  the  inspired  history,  of  whom  we  never  hear 
anything  afterwards,  and  of  whom  we  have  never 
learned  anything  before.  Eusebius  casually  men- 
tions that  in  his  day,  somewhere  near  the  begin- 
ning of  the  fourth  century,  there  was  pointed  out  a 
monument,  commemorating  her  miraculous  cure; 
but  he  gives  no  information  concerning  her  resi- 
dence, or  antecedents,  or  family  connection.  An- 
other historian  tells  us  that  the  statue  was  of  bronze, 
and  represented  her  as  in  the  act  of  touching  the 
fringe  of  the  Saviour's  garment.  And  then  another 
says  that  a  memorial  so  convincing  of  the  truth  of 
the  miracle  waked  the  anger  of  Julian  the  Apostate, 
and  that  he  tore  it  down  and  destroyed  it. 

We  know  nothing  authentic  about  the  woman 
herself  Legends,  of  no  value  however,  assert  that 
her  name  was  Veronica,  and  that  a  house  of  abode 
was  assigned  to  her  in  Csesarea  Philippi.  She 
passes  away  from  the  Scripture  record  just  as  she 
enters  it,  without  an  introduction  to  us.  For  all 
time  to  come,  she  was  to  take  her  own  place  with 
the  Samaritan  at  the  well,  and  with  the  Syropheni- 
cian  who  had  great  faith,  among  that  mysterious  but 
attractive  group  of  unnamed  and  nameless  women  in 
the  New  Testament,  unhistoric  forever  elsewhere, 
and  honored  iu  our  recollection  only  because  the 


84  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospel. 

crenerous  love  of  the  Redeemer  lifted  their  brief 
biographies  into  the  sacred  and  conspicuous  record 
of  his  companionship. 

So  this  was  one  of  the  instances  in  which  Simon 
Peter  learned  that  Christian  charity  and  pitiful 
help  knows  no  distinction  between  strangers  and 
home-born.  Any  one  who  is  in  trouble  may  come 
and  touch  the  hem  of  the  Saviour's  garment,  just 
as  this  woman  did. 

II.  He  learned  a  second  lesson:  that  the  kingdom 
of  divine  providence  works  harmoniously  into  the  king- 
dom of  divine  grace. 

For  observe  the  apparently  accidental,  but 
wonderfully  opportune,  presence  of  Jesus  Christ  in 
that  neighborhood  where  this  burdened  woman  met 
him.  He  was  at  that  moment  on  another  errand; 
indeed,  he  was  in  pursuit  of  another  miracle.  This 
cure  was  only  an  additional  effort — a  mere  side- 
stroke  of  grace,  a  by-play  of  help,  a  sort  of  paren- 
thesis of  pitifulness  for  one  in  trouble. 

He  had  started  for  the  house  of  Jairus,  where 
he  was  engaged  by  his  promise  to  raise  his  dead 
daughter  to  life.  This  interruption  occurred  in  the 
public  highway  casually,  we  should  say,  and  with- 
out premeditation.  But  here  Peter  saw  clearly  that 
there  could  be  no  such  things  as  accidents  in  the 
government  of  a  wise  God. 

One  gracious  purpose  always  includes  others,  if 
they  are  necessary  to  it.  And  providence  waits  on 
grace  in  the  shaping  of  the  events.  Most  of  us 
remember  an  ancient  prophet  who  saw  in  his  vision 
by  the  river  a  wheel  within  a  wheel;  the  symbol  of 


*'WHO  TOUCHED  ME?"  85 

a  celestial  superintendence  inscrutably  working  out 
minute  details  within  even  the  most  intricate  and 
exalted  sweeps  of  vast  counsels  of  wisdom. 

So  here:  we  find  a  miracle  within  a  miracle; 
and  that  it  did  not  come  about  by  any  happening, 
or  any  inadvertence,  we  can  prove  from  just  one 
slight  turn  of  expression  in  the  literal  record;  for 
we  are  told  that,  when  this  woman  learned  of  Jesus* 
presence,  near  and  available,  she  went  forth  ap- 
parently of  her  own  prompting  in  order  that  she 
might  find  him  and  make  her  experiment  of  touch- 
ing his  garment.  The  entire  gospel  is  found  in 
the  one  sentence  which  describes  her  endeavor: 
*'When  she  heard,  she  came."  Nobody  was  ever 
converted,  or  helped,  or  cured,  by  accident.  There 
are  fixed  means  of  grace.  Those  who  hear  of  them 
must  come  to  them.  And  when  the  heart  has  a 
purpose  of  surrender  in  it,  providence  will  open  the 
way. 

III.  Yet  another  lesson  did  Simon  Peter  learn 
that  day :  the  help  of  yesus  CJmst  comes  i7t  at  the  mo- 
ment  of  human  hopelessness. 

Let  us  trace  out  the  particulars  which  show  the 
pitiable  condition  of  this  woman.  It  would  be 
difficult  to  gather  upon  any  individual  a  greater 
aggregate  of  terrible  inflictions.  She  was  evidently 
frightfully  diseased:  *' twelve  years"  of  unrelieved 
endurance  had  proved  her  distemper  to  be  chronic. 
She  was  poor:  in  the  vain  conflict  she  had  "spent 
all  she  had  "  upon  physicians.  Moreover,  she  was 
discouraged  because  they  did  her  no  good:  ''noth- 
ing bettered,  she  the  rather. grew  worse."     She  had 


86 

become  enfeebled  with  pain:  the  surgeons  had  done 
their  worst  as  well  as  their  best;  she  had  "suffered 
many  things  of  them."  She  was  always  ceremo- 
nially unclean:  by  edict  of  Levitical  law  she  was 
exposed  to  penalty  simply  for  going  out  into  the 
street.  And  then  she  was  only  a  woman  anyway: 
everybody  turned  impatiently  against  a  woman  in 
those  days. 

All  these  particulars  stood  in  the  way  of  such 
an  invalid  as  she  was,  coming  to  a  Rabbi  for  help. 
But  who  does  not  see  that  every  one  of  them  proved 
an  argument  with  Jesus  Christ,  rather  than  a  bar? 
No  one  need  ever  consider  that  distresses  of  any 
sort  keep  a  sufferer  away  from  a  Saviour  like  ours. 
The  path  which  Jesus  took  that  day  was  purposely 
laid  in  the  direction,  where  this  afflicted  woman 
would  be  surest  to  meet  him,  if  she  went  forth  in 
faith. 

IV.  This  leads  to  a  new  lesson:  Peter  learned 
that  even  feeble  faith^  if  only  real^  will  be  graciously 
accepted  by  God. 

Observe  the  simplicity  of  the  logic  through 
which  this  troubled  creature  urged  up  her  timid 
confidence  to  so  bold  an  undertaking.  She  did  not 
pause  to  argue  concerning  anything  except  the 
exact  w^ay  of  getting  to  Jesus.  The  philosophy 
of  dealing  with  an  incurable  malady  she  knew 
nothing  about.  She  only  said  this,  *^If  I  may 
but  touch  the  hem  of  his  garment,  I  shall  be 
whole. ' ' 

Matthew  and  Mark  alone  record  this  remark  of 
the  woman.     The  cure  was  what  I^uke,   being  a 


*^WHO  TOUCHED   MK?"  87 

physician,  would  dwell  more  upon;  thus  he  thinks 
less  of  the  mental  process  which  went  before  it. 

But  how  do  we  suppose  anybody  knew  she  had 
communed  with  her  own  heart  in  this  way  before 
her  action  had  made  her  known  ?  Most  likely,  she 
rehearsed  her  experiences  afterwards  to  all  the  dis- 
ciples, and  talked  to  the  people  around,  who  heard 
of  the  cure.  It  may  be  she  told  them  with  tears  in 
her  eyes  what  a  conflict  she  had  had  before  it  was 
possible  to  persuade  herself  to  come  out  into  the 
presence  and  exposure  of  all  that  crowd.  Her  in- 
tention was  to  mingle  quietly  among  the  throng 
with  the  rest,  creep  in  behind  Jesus,  touch  his 
outer  garment  lightly,  unperceived,  and  then  retire 
again  without  giving  any  trouble  or  attracting  any 
notice.  She  imagined  that  would  be  all  whjch 
was  necessary  to  cure  her,  and   she  would  be  for- 


gotten. 


We  perceive  here,  in  one  act,  both  the  strength 
and  the  weakness  of  this  woman's  faith.  She  was 
confident  that  she  would  find  herself  whole,  if  she 
could  only  touch  him ;  and  that  was  no  mean 
amount  of  true  belief.  But  she  does  not  seem  to 
have  gone  so  far  above  that  mere  conjecture  (as  it 
were)  as  even  to  hope  that  her  exigency  could  be 
known  by  Christ  without  her  touching  him.  Con- 
versation, however,  she  had  no  thought  of.  Per- 
haps her  delicacy  forbade  her  to  indicate  the  infir- 
mity which  distressed  her  life.  Perhaps  she  feared 
his  displeasure  when  he  should  learn  she  was  cere- 
monially defiled,  and  would  make  him  also  unclean 
if  she  came  into  contact  with  his  person.      Perhaps 


88  STUDIES  IN  mark's  GOSPEL. 

she  was  timid  in  the  midst  of  an  uncontrollable 
crowd  in  the  tumultuous  street.  At  all  events,  her 
argument  seems  to  have  amounted  merely  to  this 
general  surmise: 

*'I  am  in  a  terribly  hard  strait;  if  I  could  only 
reach  this  Nazarene  teacher,  it  is  certain  I  could  be 
relieved;  my  chances  do  not  promise  much,  but 
they  promise  something;  I  will  go  to  him." 

V.  Simon  then  had  a  fresh  lesson  to  learn:  that 
all  the  work  of  yesiis  Christ  is  thorough^  whether  for 
body  or  soul. 

This  woman's  faith  was  selnsh  and  superstitious; 
but  it  was  accepted  for  her  perfect  cure.  She  man- 
aged to  touch  Christ's  garment,  no  one  perceiving 
her  inconspicuous  approach,  and  no  one  hindering 
her  unobtrusive  departure;  yet  she  was  healed,  and 
Jesus  answered:  "Be  of  good  comfort;  thy  faith 
hath  made  thee  whole." 

When  the  Saviour's  words  fall  on  our  ears,  we 
are  certain  of  an  abrupt  change  passing  over  the 
entire  narrative.  Our  notion  of  it  may  have  been 
up  to  this  point  only  as  of  an  interesting  physical 
recovery.  But  here  we  suddenly  discern  there  was 
lying  underneath  the  recital  a  new  and  spiritual 
meaning.  The  faith  seems  to  reach  her  religious 
state  as  a  pardoned  sinner  before  God. 

We  hasten  back  for  an  explanation  of  the  mys- 
tery; and  at  the  beginning  of  the  story  we  find  one 
little  circumstance,  almost  insignificant  and  often 
unnoticed  in  the  thought  of  any  rapid  reader,  yet 
at  this  point  full  of  the  profoundest  meaning.  The 
woman  here  tells  how  she  planned  to  lay  her  finger 


''WHO   TOUCHED   ME?"  89 

Upon  the  hem  of  Jesus'  garment.  According  to 
Levitical  law,  each  Israelite  was  bidden  to  attach 
to  his  external  mantle  a  fringe  or  tassel,  bordered 
with  blue  ribbon,  to  remind  him  that  he  was  sepa- 
rate or  holy  unto  God.  Upon  most  robes  there 
were  two  of  these;  one  of  which  came  up  in  the 
ordinary  folding  of  the  cloth  around  the  person 
somewhere  near  one's  shoulder.  This  was  what 
the  woman  touched.  And  here  was  the  evidence 
that  her  thought  was  in  good  measure  religious. 
She  seems  to  have  had  some  feeble  apprehension  of 
Christ's  sacerdotal  character  as  a  true  priest  unto 
God,  which  she  makes  known  by  this  quick  and 
delicate  recognition  of  one  of  its  sublimest  preroga- 
tives. 

Here,  then,  is  the  gospel  logic,  and  its  fine  result. 
Out  of  infinite  peril  and  need  the  distressed  soul 
looks  up  to  Christ  as  an  authoritative  High-priest, 
and  exclaims,  "I  must  just  find  my  way  to  him, 
and  touch  his  garment's  hem."  If  it  does  not  thus 
reason,  it  is  because  it  has  not  yet  felt  its  primal 
danger.  And  so  it  is  left  to  suffer  on  and  suffer  on, 
and  no  one  will  pity  its  distress,  for  its  distress  does 
not  deserve  to  be  pitied.  If  a  soul  has  not  learned 
by  this  time  what  a  poor,  miserable,  painful,  hope- 
less, incurable  thing  sin  is,  and  must  forever  be, 
then  God  will  sovereignly  leave  it  to  journey  around 
like  this  pitiable  woman  among  earthly  helps  and 
betrayals,  nothing  bettered  and  rather  growing 
worse,  until  it  will  at  last  find  out  that  awful  fact, 
and  be  ready  to  be  saved  by  him. 

How  affecting  it  seems,  to  think  that  not  only 


90  STUDIES   IN    MARK'S   GOSPEI.. 

the  great  sorrow  of  that  rich  ruler  was  known  to 
Jesus,  but  even  this  concealed  malady  of  a  poor 
nameless  woman;  the  secret  trial  and  the  open  be- 
reavement alike!  We  are  not  forced  to  inform  him 
concerning  these  experiences  under  which  we  are 
harassed;  he  understands  our  affliction  the  instant 
we  ask  relief.  Our  Lord  never  called  any  one  be- 
fore by  the  name  he  gave  this  woman;  nor  ever 
after  did  he  address  any  one  as  "daughter."  New 
relationships  are  constituted  in  every  case,  however, 
when  one  comes  penitently  in  faith  to  him. 

VI.  Still  another  lesson  must  Simon  Peter  have 
learned  here :  a  keen  discrimiiiation  is  observed  be- 
tween showy  and  genuifie piety. 

A  most  singular  arrest  was  made  upon  this  wo- 
man, as  she  went  hurrying  away  out  of  sight.  It 
is  no  difficult  thing  to  imagine  a  joy  deep  as  hers, 
though  it  would  be  impossible  to  picture  it  with 
mere  forms  of  words.  A  sense  of  serene  gladness 
must  have  pervaded  her  whole  being,  when  she  be- 
came conscious  that  the  burden  of  a  half  score  of 
years  was  rolled  off  in  an  hour.  Just  as  she,  there- 
fore, was  stealing  away  modestly  into  her  own 
retirement,  that  she  might  rejoice  in  seclusion, 
there  was  heard  behind  her  a  startling  inquiry. 
Jesus  said  abruptly:  "Who  touched  me?" 

To  this  at  first  no  one  gave  reply,  for  a  mute 
wonder  lay  upon  the  minds  of  those  nearest  to 
him — wonder,  not  that  any  one  of  those  Capernaum 
people  had  come  into  contact  with  him  however 
violently,  but  that  he  should  put  so  preposterous  a 
question  in  a  company  so  dense  in  the  street.     In 


**WHO  TOUCHED   ME?"  91 

one  of  the  gospels,  the  word  used  means  stifled;  the 
multitudes  stifled  or  suffocated  him.  Simon  Peter 
it  was  who  at  last  broke  this  embarrassinc-  silence. 
He  seemed  to  imagine  that  he  ought  to  administer 
impliedly  a  rebuke  for  such  hasty  flash  of  impa- 
tience.    So,  denying  for  himself,  he  exclaimed, 

*' Master,  the  multitude  throng  thee,  and  press 
thee;  and  sayest  thou.  Who  touched  me?  Thou 
seest  the  multitude  thronging  thee  !" 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  that  our  Lord  passes 
no  censure  on  Peter  in  this  instance,  though  the 
answer  he  made  was  very  much  like  impertinence; 
but  he  still  insists  on  his  question, 

*' Somebody  hath  touched  me,  for  I  perceive 
that  virtue  hath  gone  out  of  me!" 

Here  is  disclosed  the  intimation  that  it  is  possi- 
ble for  human  beings  to  throng  Christ,  even  so 
closely  as  to  jostle  him,  and  yet  not  one  fairly 
touch  the  hem  of  his  garment  without  his  notice. 
''The  Lord  knoweth  them  that  are  his."  He  was 
well  acquainted  at  the  moment  with  that  nameless 
woman;  for  the  one  striking  thing  of  all  which  she 
did  was  this  touching  him  in  faith  to  ask  a  favor. 
"  We  might  just  as  well  make  this  short  question 
a  motto  of  untold  meaning  for  all  time  in  churches. 
It  would  serve  searchingly  for  each  Communion 
occasion.  Through  and  through  the  assemblies 
Christ  might  almost  seem  to  be  passing,  as  he  asks, 
"Who  of  all  these  people,  that  throng  me  in  such 
ordinances,  have  actually  touched  me  with  the 
finger  of  their  faith  on  the  hem  of  my  garment?" 
The  great  respectable  world  follow  on  after  Christ 


93  STUDIES  IN   mark's   GOSPEI.. 

even  now;  large  congregations  jostle  him,  and  each 
other,  in  high  strivings  of  conspicuous  charities 
and  forms  and  outward  observances,  under  the  ur- 
gency of  education,  under  the  press  of  curiosity, 
under  the  attraction  of  sensibility,  under  the  excite- 
ment of  example;  but  who  lays  his  life  down  in 
surrender?  Who  rests  his  soul  upon  the  atonement 
for  deliverance  from  the  chronic  distemper  of  sin  ? 

To  answer  this  inquiry,  there  is  found  one  here, 
and  another  there;  a  son,  a  daughter,  in  one  house- 
hold, a  father,  or  a  mother,  in  another.  Whole 
families,  in  these  nominally  Christian  communities, 
crowd  the  house  of  prayer;  but  when  the  broken 
bread  and  the  cup  of  wine  go  around  asking  close 
questions,  the  discrimination  among  them  is  very 
sharp,  and  not  rarely  the  decision  is  painful. 

VII.  There  is  at  least  one  more  lesson  which 
Peter  learned :  the  impossibility  of  serving  yesiis 
Christ  fully  out  of  sight. 

This  woman  worked  her  way  through  the  crowd 
quietly,  and  quietly  she  expected  to  withdraw  from 
danger  of  notice.  Just  there  it  was  determined  to 
stop  her  progress,  and  bring  her  forward  to  be  re- 
cognized. There  must  have  been  some  great  reason 
for  this;  for  every  instant  of  delay  was  of  intense 
importance  to  Jairus,  whose  maiden  daughter  was 
at  the  point  of  death.  That  reason  now  transpires. 
This  invalid  came  for  her  blessing  in  secret;  she 
must  here  consent  to  be  rewarded  openly.  When 
the  question  was  asked,  she  perceived  that  she  wa^ 
discovered.  She  came  forward  kneeling  at  Jesus' 
feet,   and  owned   everything    she    had    attempted. 


93 

He  gently  compelled  her  openly  to  confess  in  the 
hearing  of  the  people  her  full  surrender. 

It  would  seem  as  if  the  Lord  Jesus  wanted  to 
make  the  personal  acquaintance  of  this  stranger. 
She  came  behind  him;  he  invited  her  to  stand  be- 
fore. He  called  this  nameless  creature  into  con- 
spicuous notice.  Evidently  he  meant  to  direct  her 
heart,  and  confirm  her  experience.  By  forcing  her 
to  explain  her  conduct,  he  fastened  her  attention 
upon  two  facts:  that  she  had  come  to  him  in  abso- 
lute hopelessness,  in  the  high  venture  of  a  tremu- 
lous faith:  that  she  was  going  away  in  the  joy  of  a 
complete  and  permanent  relief. 

She  would  have  lost  more  than  half  her  bless- 
ing, if  she  had  just  retreated  out  of  sight  with  only 
her  bodily  ailment  cured.  The  immeasurable  ad- 
vantage of  such  a  bold  committal  of  herself  to 
Christ  must  be  apparent  at  a  glance.  There  is  even 
a  noticeable  delicacy  in  our  Lord's  action;  he  chose 
the  exact  moment  for  his  call,  when  she  had  al- 
ready received  his  favor.  She  would  have  been 
frightened,  if  he  had  challenged  her  so  when  she 
was  creeping  up  behind  in  timid  experiment.  He 
waited  till  she  was  healed;  then  she  was  confident 
and  would  feel  bolder.  Grace  always  goes  before 
duty.  God  never  calls  any  one  to  profess  his  name 
in  public,  until  he  has  bestowed  the  gift  of  his  re- 
cognition. Then  he  asks  a  return.  It  is  a  weak 
Christian  indeed  who  hopes  to  serve  Christ  out  of 
sight.  A  grateful  heart  will  hear  him  inquiring, 
"Who  touched  me?"  and  in  turn  will  wish  to  fall 
at  his  feet,  and  tell  him  "all  the  truth." 


94  STUDIES    IN   MARK'S   GOSPElv. 

These  are  some  of  the  lessons  which  Simon  Pe- 
ter must  have  learned  while  he  was  waiting  in  the 
street  for  this  woman's  cure.  His  story  has  been 
introduced  merely  because  it  would  be  likely  to 
seem  vivid  and  clear  to  us  to  imagine  what  so  ob- 
serving a  bystander  as  he  was  always,  might  gain 
from  what  was  passing  so  swiftly  before  him.  The 
same  lessons  are  ours  to  learn  also,  however.  The 
miracle  is  a  parable,  as  are  all  the  others  which 
Jesus  Christ  WTought.  For  the  cure  of  Satan's  worst 
disease  in  the  human  heart — sin  against  God's  law, 
with  all  its  pollution  and  its  peril — there  is  posi- 
tively no  relief  but  that  which  is  given  when  the 
touch  of  an  unwavering  faith  is  laid  on  his  gar- 
ment, and  his  priestly  atonement  is  received. 

"  We  may  not  climb  the  heavenly  steeps,  to  bring  the  Lord 

Christ  down; 
In  vain  we  search  the  lowest  deeps,  for  him  no  depths  can 

drown. 
But  warm,  sweet,  tender,  even  yet  a  present  help  is  he; 
And  faith  has  yet  its  Olivet,  and  love  its  Galilee. 
The  healing  of  the  seamless  dress  is  by  our  beds  of  pain; 
We  touch  him  in  life's  throng  and  press,  and  we  are  whole 

again." 


HOW   TO    MAKt:    UHN    RKP£;nT.  q- 

IX. 

HOW  TO  MAKE  MEN  REPENT. 

"And  they  went  out,  and  preached  that  men  should  re- 
pent."—^T/arX:  6: 12. 

Two  things  in  the  record  made  of  the  disciples' 
tour  into  Galilee  will  attract  attention:  one  is,  the 
purpose  of  their  preaching;  the  other  is,  the  instru- 
ment furnished  for  rendering  it  efficacious.  "And 
they  went  out,  and  preached  that  men  should  re- 
pent." Then  they  enforced  the  doctrine  by  work- 
ing miracles.  "And  they  cast  out  many  devils, 
and  anointed  with  oil  many  that  were  sick,  and 
healed  them." 

It  does  not  seem  easy,  at  first  sight,  to  trace  the 
exact  connection  between  great  signs  and  wonders 
and  the  peculiar  inner  experience  of  mind  and 
heart  which  we  call  penitence  for  sin.  Some  have 
been  satisfied  to  say  that  these  followers  of  Jesus 
evidenced  their  whole  mission  as  from  him  by  the 
power  they  exhibited,  and  then  drove  their  hearers 
towards  the  particular  duty  of  repentance  by  ex- 
hortation and  appeal. 

But  is  there  no  closer  link  in  the  logic  than 
that?  Let  us  take  up  a  veritable  case  of  conviction 
of  sin  and  see  what  it  was  which  induced  the  feel- 
ing. It  has  been  recorded  of  no  less  a  person  than 
Simon  Peter,  one  of  these  very  disciples  now  going 
forth  at  the  Lord's  command,  that  he  fell  into  the 


96  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEI.. 

most  violent  prostration  of  spirit  in  view  of  his 
personal  unworthiness  on  a  remembered  occasion, 
when  Jesus  wrought  the  miracle  of  an  extraordinary 
draught  of  fishes:  "When  Simon  Peter  saw  it,  he 
fell  down  at  Jesus'  knees,  saying,  Depart  from  me; 
for  I  am  a  sinful  man,  O  Lord."  All  the  explana- 
tion we  have  to  offer  of  this  sinsfular  conclusion 
from  such  premises  is  found  in  the  fact  that  God 
was  evidently  disclosed  before  the  eyes  of  his  crea- 
ture, and  at  once  Simon  saw  his  wickedness  in  the 
full  light  of  the  display. 

Put  with  this  the  experience  of  Job:  we  all  re- 
call how  he  was  pestered  and  argued  with  by  his 
unwise  friends,  until  his  whole  being  was  exas- 
perated and  sore ;  then  the  Lord  in  person  an- 
swered him  out  of  the  whirlwind,  and,  to  our 
amazement.  Job  replies  under  deepest  conviction  of 
sin:  "I  have  heard  of  thee  by  the  hearing  of  the 
ear ;  but  now  mine  eye  seeth  thee  ;  wherefore  I 
abhor  myself,  and  repent  in  dust  and  ashes."  Plere 
again  we  see  plainly  that  it  is  the  disclosure  of 
God's  majesty,  as  before  it  was  of  God's  power, 
which  has  constrained  a  sinful  mortal  to  discover 
and  acknowledge  his  transgressions. 

A  like  incident  in  the  career  of  the  prophet 
Isaiah  will  add  a  new  illustration.  Pie  saw  in  the 
temple  a  great  vision  of  the  Lord  of  hosts;  the  sera- 
phim were  singing,  but  he  could  not  join  in  their 
song;  he  tells  us  his  experience:  "Then  said  I, 
Woe  is  me!  for  I  am  undone;  because  I  am  a  man 
of  unclean  lips,  and  I  dwell  in  the  midst  of  a  people 
of  unclean  lips:  for  mine  eyes  have  seen  the  King, 


HOW    TO    MAKE    MEN    REPENT.  97 

the  Lord  of  hosts."  He  discovered  his  own  secret 
sins  in  the  light  of  God's  countenance.  The  divine 
holiness  was  too  much  for  him.  It  pierced  through 
to  his  conscience  with  the  sharp  arrow  of  convic- 
tion, so  that  he  flung  himself  down  in  a  tremor  of 
fright,  remorse,  and  apprehension.  He  rushed  at 
once  into  a  frank  admission  of  his  hopeless  expos- 
ure to  the  wrath  of  God. 

It  would  seem,  therefore,  that  we  might  be  ready 
for  the  distinct  enunciation  of  a  proposition  which 
would  be  of  greatest  help  just  now  when  teachers 
and  pastors  are  asking  how  the  communities,  far 
and  wide,  may  be  made  to  feel  their  need  of  a  Sa- 
viour, by  being  made  to  see  their  sins.  If  Scripture 
is  to  be  trusted,  then  this  is  true:  real  conviction  of 
sin  is  best  produced  by  an  exhibition  of  the  divine 
character  and  attributes. 

Lest  there  should  be  any  misapprehension,  per- 
haps it  will  be  prudent  at  this  point  to  say  that 
there  are  sometimes  intermediate  steps  leading  up 
to  this  experience.  Real  conviction  of  sin  as  mani- 
fested by  others  is  often  of  value,  for  it  makes  us 
think  of  God.  We  are  creatures  of  sympathy  as 
well  as  of  imitation.  A  woman,  looking  straight 
upwards  on  the  street,  will  stop  an  anxious  crowd, 
and  set  them  looking  upwards  too.  So  a  man, 
thoroughly  frightened,  will  force  a  hundred  men 
into  an  inexplicable  alarm  around  him.  A  small 
child,  bitterly  crying  in  a  railroad  station  over  the 
departure  of  his  mother's  coffin  to  be  buried,  will 
fill  scores  of  eyes  with  tears,  all  the  more  if  the  sobs 
are  quiet    and  the  grief  is   dull  and  desolate.       It 

iituclk-8  III  MllU-:>  Uosp.-).  S 


98  STUDIES    IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

is  not  to  be  denied  at  all  that  religions  life  and 
sensibility  communicate  themselves  along  the  line 
from  one  human  being  to  another. 

One  of  the  most  celebrated  metropolitan  preach- 
ers of  England  has  published  a  sermon  with  seven 
texts,  which,  after  all,  are  but  one  sentence  with 
three  words  in  it:  "I  have  sinned."  He  takes  up 
the  story  of  Pharaoh:  "And  Pharaoh  sent  and 
called  for  Moses  and  Aaron,  and  said  unto  them,  I 
have  sinned  this  time:  the  Lord  is  righteous,  and  I 
and  my  people  are  wicked."  Then  he  analyzes  the 
character  of  Balaam:  "And  Balaam  said  unto  the 
angel  of  the  Loid,  I  have  sinned;  for  I  knew  not 
that  thou  stoodest  in  the  way  against  me:  now, 
therefore,  if  it  displease  thee,  I  will  get  me  back 
ao^ain."  After  this  he  examines  the  confession  of 
Saul:  "And  Saul  said  imto  Samuel,  I  have  sinned; 
for  I  have  transgressed  the  commandment  of  the 
Lord,  and  thy  words:  because  I  feared  the  people 
and  obeyed  their  voice."  Then  he  exhibits  the 
meaning  of  Achan,  searching  the  acknowledgment 
carefully:  "  And  Achan  answered  Joshua,  and  said, 
Indeed  I  have  sinned  against  the  Lord  God  of 
Israel,  and  thus  and  thus  have  I  done."  Over  in 
the  New  Testament  he  finds  the  admission  made  of 
his  folly  by  Judas:  "Then  Judas,  which  had  be- 
trayed him,  when  he  saw  that  he  was  condemned, 
repented  himself,  and  brought  again  the  thirty 
pieces  of  silver  to  the  chief  priests  and  elders,  say- 
ing, I  have  sinned  in  that  I  have  betrayed  the  inno- 
cent blood.  And  they  said.  What  is  that  to  us?  see 
thou  to  that."     He  ^lludes  to  Job;  "I  haye  sinned; 


HOW   TO   MAKE   MEN    REPENT.  99 

what  shall  I  do  unto  thee,  O  thou  preserver  of 
men  ?  Why  hast  thou  set  me  as  a  mark  against  thee, 
so  that  I  am  a  burden  to  myself?"  And  he  ends 
with  the  penitence  of  the  prodigal  son:  ^'I  will 
arise  and  go  to  my  father,  and  will  say  unto  him. 
Father,  I  have  sinned  against  heaven  and  before 
thee."  Out  of  all  this  he  constructs  a  discourse 
as  odd  as  it  must  have  been  powerful  when  he  de- 
livered it. 

In  one  of  the  bright  books  of  modern  literature 
I  have  met  the  tale  of  a  clergyman  who,  as  a  me- 
mento or  symbol  of  some  committed  sin,  known 
only  to  himself,  wore  constantly  a  black  serge  veil. 
Never  was  he  seen,  at  home  or  abroad,  without  this 
solemn  sign  of  acknowledgment  and  penitence  over 
his  face.  It  was  related  further  that  the  effect  of 
such  a  sable  reminder  of  guilt  as  well  as  of  common 
exposure  was  very  impressive  upon  the  people 
among  whom  he  ministered.  Every  one  who  ap- 
proached him  felt  summoned  to  institute  an  inquiry 
whether  he  himself  was  not  wearing  a  like  mask  to 
cover  some  personal  wickedness;  or  whether,  at  all 
events,  he  had  not  yet  some  undiscovered  wrong, 
over  which  he  was  trying  to  stretch  the  folds  of  a 
cautious  concealment.  It  never  proved  a  welcome 
sight  for  any  one;  for  it  set  the  entire  congregation 
upon  a  grave  search  for  secret  transgressions,  indi- 
vidual or  social,  which,  behind  one  veil  or  another, 
they  were  covering  from  the  eyes  of  their  fellow- 
men  deep  in  their  hearts.  It  was  a  strange  way  of 
influencing  men;  but  it  owed  its  power,  we  cannot 
doubt,  to  the  silent  suggestion  it  made  of  a  judg- 


lOO  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

nient  by  God  wlilcli  tlie  conscience  recognized  as 
right  and  irrevocable. 

The  connection,  therefore,  between  the  miracles 
these  disciples  were  commissioned  to  work  and  the 
specific  doctrine  they  were  commissioned  to  preach, 
was  closer  than  a  mere  evidential  proof.  When 
they  showed  God's  holiness,  or  his  power,  the 
people  felt  and  admitted  their  wickedness. 

We  might  be  perfectly  willing  to  leave  these 
teachings  of  the  Scripture  to  work  their  way,  and 
ask  the  teachers  in  the  classes,  and  the  preachers 
in  the  pulpits,  always  to  hold  up  Christ  in  objec- 
tive exhibition,  if  they  would  hope  to  work  evan- 
gelical repentance,  if  it  were  not  for  one  unfortun- 
ate perversity  of  human  minds  in  considering  plain 
truth.  Men  throw  back  the  counsels  of  the  Bible 
with  the  assertion  that  circumstances  are  different 
now,  and  so  will  need  different  dealings.  When  we 
start  to  teach  inquirers,  it  appears  almost  irresistible 
for  us  to  attempt  to  show  them  their  guilt  by  a 
series  of  expostulations  or  reproaches.  We  pelt 
them  with  indiscriminate  accusations.  We  press 
them  most  vigorously  with  enumerations  of  their 
personal  crimes;  we  exhort  them  to  remember  the 
Sabbaths  they  have  broken,  the  mockeries  in  prayer 
they  have  lifted,  the  duties  they  have  shunned,  the 
lusts  they  have  indulged;  and  then  we  assure  them 
that  God  is  angry  at  wicked  people  every  day,  and 
will  send  them  down  into  the  lowest  hell,  if  they  do 
not  speedily  repent.  This  may  be  all  true;  but  the 
likelihood  is,  it  will  stir  up  bad  temper  and  start  ar- 
gument.     None  of  us  relish  being  arraigned  by  our 


HOW   TO    MAKK   MIi:N    REPKNT.  IOI 

equals;  it  certainly  exasperates  most  people  to  be 
told  such  things  by  one  of  their  fellow-men.  If 
what  we  really  desire  is  the  sad  sincerity  of  a 
penitent  surrender  to  a  Saviour,  willing  to  take 
the  worst  malefactors,  we  shall  reach  it  better  by 
holding  that  Saviour's  holy  life  and  character  di- 
rectly up  before  one's  open  eyes. 

So  all  that  remains  needful  for  me  now  is  to 
show,  by  a  few  familiar  instances  in  modern  life, 
that  the  principle  holds  just  as  true  in  our  times  as 
ever  it  did  in  days  long  ago. 

Of  course,  it  becomes  necessary  to  note,  that 
God  manifests  himself  to  men  now  not  in  visiofis, 
trances,  or  dreams,  but  with  providential  and  spirit- 
ual disclosures  of  his  purpose  concerning  them. 
We  must  take  everything  into  account;  the  one  ob- 
ject of  a  divine  interposition  being  to  force  uncon- 
cerned people  to  notice  the  infinite  perfections  of 
their  Maker,  we  must  leave  to  his  inexhaustible  re- 
sources the  methods  of  his  approach.  His  multi- 
tudinous instruments  will  have  to  be  watched; — 
sometimes  a  person,  sometimes  a  book,  sometimes 
an  accident,  sometimes  an  inexplicable  impression, 
sometimes  a  sermon ;  whatever  it  may  be,  let  a 
thoughtful  mind  observe  just  the  one  end  God  is 
aiming  at. 

Take,  for  one  example,  the  remembered  instance 
of  the  conversion  of  Elizabeth  Wallbridge,  the 
*' Dairyman's  Daughter,"  related  by  herself  in  the 
tract.  She  gives  her  artless  account  in  one  of  her 
later  letters  to  her  pastor.  A  strange  clergyman 
happened  to  preach  in  the  village  pulpit.      She  was 


I03  STUDIES   IN    MARK'S   GOSPEL. 

foolishly  arrayed  that  day,  and  went  with  a  vain, 
proud  heart  to  the  service. 

*'At  length  the  clergyman  gave  out  his  text: 
'Be  ye  clothed  with  humility.'  He  drew  a  com- 
parison between  the  clothing  of  the  body  and  that 
of  the  soul.  At  a  very  early  part  of  his  discourse,  I 
began  to  feel  ashamed  of  my  passion  for  fine  dress- 
ing and  apparel;  but  when  he  came  to  describe  the 
garment  of  salvation  with  which  a  Christian  is 
clothed,  I  felt  a  powerful  discovery  of  the  naked- 
ness of  my  own  soul.  I  saw  that  I  had  neither  the 
humility  mentioned  in  the  text,  nor  any  one  part  of 
iht  true  Christian  character.  I  looked  at  my  gay 
dress,  and  blushed  for  shame  on  account  of  my 
pride.  I  looked  at  the  minister,  and  he  seemed  to 
be  as  a  messenger  sent  from  heaven  to  open  my 
eyes.  I  looked  at  the  congregation,  and  wondered 
whether  any  one  else  felt  as  I  did.  I  looked  at  my 
heart,  and  it  appeared  full  of  iniquity.  I  trembled 
as  he  spoke,  and  yet  I  felt  a  great  drawing  of  heart 
to  the  words  he  uttered. 

''  He  opened  the  riches  of  divine  grace  in  God's 
method  of  saving  the  sinner.  I  was  astonished  at 
what  I  had  been  doing  all  the  days  of  my  life.  He 
described  the  meek,  lowly,  and  humble  example  of 
Christ;  I  felt  proud,  lofty,  vain,  and  self-consequen- 
tial. He  represented  Christ  as  '  Wisdom;'  I  felt  my 
ignorance.  He  held  him  forth  as  'Righteousness;' 
I  was  convinced  of  my  own  guilt.  He  proved  him 
to  be  '  Sanctification ;'  I  saw  my  corruption.  He 
proclaimed  him  as  '  Redemption;'  I  felt  my  slavery 
to  sin,  and  my  captivity  to  Satan.     He  concluded 


HOW   TO    MAKE    MEN   REPENT.  103 

with  an  animated  address  to  sinners,  in  wliicli  he 
exhorted  them  to  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come,  to 
cast  off  the  love  of  outward  orname-nts,  to  put  on 
Christ,  and  be  clothed  with  true  humility." 

Here  is  exactly  the  illustration  we  want.  This 
preacher  held  up  Jesus  Christ;  and  this  sinner  saw 
herself  the  moment  he  made  her  see  the  purity  and 
perfectness  of  the  Saviour.  His  divine  holiness 
forced  her  to  recognize  her  utter  defilement.  So 
each  attribute  disclosed  brought  with  its  discovery 
the  sense  and  sting  of  deepest  conviction  of  sin. 
We  must  hold  up  Christ,  and  then  comes  the  prom- 
ise: "  And  I,  if  I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth,  will 
draw  all  men  unto  me." 

For  it  is  the  strange  property  of  this  spectacle,  as 
seen  by  the  guilty  soul  of  man,  that  it  heals  with 
the  same  force  as  that  with  which  it  wounds.  It 
beckons  with  the  same  hand  that  bruises.  The 
holiness  of  God  humiliates  one  who  is  penitent,  and 
yet  at  the  same  instant  it  brings  him  purity  by  par- 
don. Nowhere  is  this  one  attribute  so  illustriously 
presented  as  in  the  crucifixion  of  God's  only-begot- 
ten Son.  For  the  sake  of  providing  an  atonement 
which  should  avail  to  banish  sin  from  the  human 
race,  infinite  holiness  came  to  the  cross:  and  by  the 
cross  we  are  redeemed.  Jesus  Christ's  death  shames 
us  and  saves  us  by  the  same  wonderful  disclosure. 

"  Thus,  while  his  death  my  sin  displays  in  all  its  blackest  hue, 
Such  is  the  mystery  of  grace,  it  seals  my  pardon  too." 


I04  STUDIES    IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

X. 

TAKING  UP  ONE'S  CROSS. 

"Whosoever   will   come  after   me,  let  hlm   peny  himself, 
and  take  up  his  cross,  and  follow  me." — mar/:  s:;^^. 

One  expression  there  is  in  this  verse  which, 
when  carefully  analyzed,  will  be  found  to  furnish 
an  intelligible  and  authoritative  answer  to  the  ques- 
tion how  one  can  become  a  Christian.  The  appli- 
cation is  universal,  for  it  says,  ^'Whosoever."  If, 
therefore,  one  is  clear  that  a  true  religious  life 
claims  separation  from  the  world,  and  that  it  in- 
cludes a  radical  and  extensive  change  of  purpose 
and  behavior,  and  if,  having  fully  counted  the  cost, 
he  yet  desires  to  take  a  permanent  stand  for  Christ, 
then  here  is  a  disclosure  to  him  of  the  precise  way 
in  which  to  accomplish  it. 

Think  the  entire  verse  over,  pausing  upon  the 
particulars,  and  you  will  perceive  that  it  embraces 
three  simple  counsels  in  a  single  sentence:  "And 
when  he  had  called  the  people  unto  him  with  his 
disciples  also,  he  said  unto  them,  Whosoever  will 
come  after  me,  let  him  deny  himself — let  him  take 
up  his  cross — let  him  follqw  me."  The  direction 
is  for  every  one  alike:  "And  this  he  said  to  them 
all."  There  is  no  royal  road  to  salvation  other, 
than  this;  the  common  path  is  really  the  king's 
highway. 

I.   The  first  counsel  to  an  inquirer  then  is,  "  Let 


TAKING   UP   one's   CROSS.  I05 

him  deny  himself. '^  A  general  form  of  expression, 
but  not  difficult  to  explain.  The  precept  is  meant 
to  rebuke  self-will,  self-indulgence,  and  self-right- 
eousness. 

1.  Earliest  of  all,  self-will.  When  our  Saviour 
taught  his  disciples  to  pray,  "Thy  will  be  done  in 
earth  as  it  is  in  heaven,"  he  knew  he  struck  at  the 
root  of  all  wrong  in  this  world.  Sin  is  nothing  but 
the  setting  of  a  will  against  a  will — placing  the  will 
of  the  creature  in  antagonism  and  opposition  to  the 
will  of  the  Creator.  Break  human  will,  and  the 
unfallen  Eden  returns  again. 

The  old  shepherd  out  on  the  hillside,  talking 
with  his  son,  was  asked,  "Father,  what  is  a  cross?" 
He  chose  two  spears  out  of  the  rank  grass  near  by; 
one  was  very  long,  so  long  that  he  was  hardly  able 
to  touch  the  two  ends  of  it  with  his  hands  stretched 
out;  the  other  was  short,  a  mere  bit  of  stalk  between 
his  fingers.  Putting  the  one  against  the  other,  he 
bade  the  boy  tell  where  it  was;  and  indeed  he  could 
not  reply,  for  he  could  not  see  it  at  all.  It  lay  so 
along  upon  the  other  that  his  eyes  missed  it  alto- 
gether. Then  the  man  placed  it  lengthwise  over 
the  long  one.  "Ah,  I  see  it  now,"  said  the  lad, 
"for  it  goes  right  the  other  w^ay,  and  it  makes  a 
cross."  Then  the  shepherd  told  him  wisely  that 
a  human  will  was  very  short,  and  with  God's  will 
behind  it  made  a  right  line  of  life;  but  forced  into 
variance  and  rebellion,  it  formed  what  men  call  a 
cross.  So  a  great  many  people  make  their  own 
crosses. 

2.  Next  to  self-will,   self-indulgence   stands  in 

5* 


I06  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPEI.. 

the  way  of  one's  coming  after  Christ;  and  this  like- 
wise must  be  denied.  Men  must  smite  down  their 
pride,  their  passions,  their  appetites,  and  their 
ambitions,  whenever  and  wherever  they  interfere 
with  genuine  obedience.  There  are  no  flowery 
beds  of  ease  upon  which  Christians  can  hope  to  be 
carried  softly  to  glory.  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is 
one  that  suffereth  violence,  and  it  is  the  violent 
alone  who  take  it  by  force.  *'  Give  what  thou  com- 
mandest,"  prayed  the  penitent  Augustine,  "and 
then  command  what  thou  wilt." 

In  the  time  of  the  crusades,  every  broken  down 
cavalier  who  found  his  fortunes  wrecked,  or  who  felt 
that  his  fame  was  tarnished,  started  on  a  pilgrimage 
to  the  Holy  Land.  Of  course  he  had  no  heart  in 
the  journey;  but  it  was  profitable  to  wear  the  white 
emblem  of  the  crucifixion  on  the  shoulder,  and  thus 
to  seem  like  a  true  devotee  going  to  the  sepulchre 
of  Jesus.  Then  all  along  the  way  across  the  conti- 
nent the  good  pious  people  were  accustomed  to  give 
a  pilgrim  food  and  shelter.  So  it  served  the  pur- 
pose of  these  lazy  hypocrites  to  go  slowly,  and  not 
go  very  far  at  a  time;  and  they  fairly  swarmed  in 
the  villages  and  towns  where  there  were  most  Chris- 
tians to  entertain  them.  Now  in  the  old  Norman 
French  language  the  name  of  the  Holy  Land  is 
Sahite  Terre;  and  as  these  wretched  idlers  were 
ostensibly  going  to  Jerusalem,  they  were  called 
saunterers.  Thus  came  into  use  our  new  word 
"saunter,"  which  means  to  loiter  or  to  linger. 
Oh,  how  many  foolish  persons  there  are  now-a-days 
who  think   they  can   go  sauntering  along  to   the 


TAKING   UP   one's   cross.  IO/ 

heavenly  Jerusalem !  Our  Saviour  says,  ''Let  him 
deny  himself." 

3.  Self-righteousness  comes  next  to  this,  and 
must  certainly  be  denied,  for  it  is  more  fatally  inju- 
rious than  all  the  rest.  It  is  not  possible  that  any 
man  should  be  saved  by  his  own  works,  for  he  can- 
not atone  for  his  own  sins.  If  we  are  saved  at  all, 
it  must  be  through  the  abounding  grace  of  Jesus 
Christ,  God's  crucified  Son. 

Poor  Martin  Luther,  creeping  painfully  for  pen- 
ance along  the  stone  steps  of  Pilate's  staircase  in 
Rome,  upon  his  bare  knees,  awakes  our  sympathy; 
and  yet  we  ourselves  try,  in  ways  only  a  little  less 
gross,  though  none  the  less  agonizing  and  none  the 
less  futile,  to  make  peace  with  our  Maker.  Mean- 
time the  heralds  of  the  gospel  are  proclaiming,  "By 
erace  are  ye  saved  throusrh  faith."  Tell  the  world 
that  infant-drowning  in  the  Ganges  will  earn  ad- 
mission into  heaven,  and  awful  as  may  be  the  agony 
of  a  mother's  broken  heart,  the  river  will  swim 
with  perishing  children.  And  still  Christ  keeps 
saying,  "Look  unto  me  and  be  saved."  Madam 
Guyon  puts  peas  in  her  shoes  and  mingles  colquin- 
tida  with  her  drink,  and  the  picture  of  the  heroic 
woman  is  inexpressibly  sad,  for  she  certainly  ought 
to  have  known  that  salvation  was  always  perfectly 
free.  God  declares  that  "all  our  righteousnesses 
are  as  filthy  rags-"  When  the  missionaries  read 
that  verse  from  Isaiah,  to  the  Nestorian  heathen, 
two  priests  turned  around  abruptly,  asking,  "  Is  that 
in  the  Bible  ?"  Reading  it  for  themselves,  they  hung 
their  heads  and  went  away  thoughtful  and  silent. 


I08  STUDIES   IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

II.  We  must  came  back  lo  the  verse:  the  next 
thing  to  be  told  to  an  inquirer  is  that  he  must  take 
up  the  cross.  Perhaps  it  will  be  easier  to  under- 
stand this  if  we  look  at  the  symbol  for  a  moment, 
and  then  afterwards  we  can  develop  the  doctrine 
taught. 

I.  Most  of  us  have  seen  in  the  window  that 
beautiful  figure  cut  in  cardboard,  representing  a 
cross  so  twined  with  a  vine  running  around  it  that 
the  light  shone  in  through  the  interstices  and  drew 
the  outlines  as  of  a  shaded  picture  against  the  glass. 
Underneath  was  the  Latin  motto,  ''^Teneo  et  Teneor.^'^ 
In  this  there  was  indicated  the  twofold  use  of  this 
sacred  emblem :  "  I  bear,  and  I  am  borne. ' '  As  for 
a  Christian  being  borne  on  the  cross,  that  is,  being 
crucified  actually,  no  one  needs  to  make  any  mis- 
take in  this  day  of  gospel  grace:  Christ  was  cruci- 
fied in  our  behalf,  once  for  all.  It  is  the  holding 
up  of  one's  cross  which  is  suggested  here  in  the 
verse;  and  a  vivid  illustration  of  what  is  meant 
might  be  found  in  the  story  of  Simon  the  Cyrenian, 
whom  the  Jews  or  the  soldiers  compelled  to  come 
up  behind  Jesus,  at  the  moment  when  his  strength 
gave  way,  and  to  help  carry  the  heavy  timber  upon 
which  our  Saviour  was  about  to  be  nailed.  (See 
Luke  23:26.) 

It  was  the  custom  in  those  cruel  times  to  make 
a  condemned  criminal,  on  the  way  to  execution, 
transport  the  cross  to  the  place  outside  the  city  wall 
where  it  was  to  be  planted.  To  bear  such  a  burden 
with  the  malefactor  was  to  share  in  his  shame. 
And  the  direction  we  are  studying  can  signify  no 


TAKING   UP  ONE'S  CROSS.  IO9 

less  than  that  every  Christian  is  expected  to  fare 
^vith  his  Lord,  even  at  the  lowest  of  His  fortunes  in 
this  wicked  world.  We  must  be  willing  to  meet 
the  absolutely  last  extreme  of  self-sacrifice,  no  mat- 
ter how  humiliating  it  may  be,  in  order  to  show  we 
love  and  obey  our  blessed  Master. 

2.  The  doctrine,  therefore,  which  the  use  of  this 
symbol  inculcates  is  very  far-reaching  and  peremp- 
tory. Generally  there  is  to  be  found  in  the  path  of 
every  follow^er  of  the  Lord  Jesus  great,  and  often 
disagreeable,  duty  to  be  done.  This  it  is  easy  to 
call  his  *' cross,"  to  be  taken  up  and  borne  faith- 
fully to  the  end. 

A  father  is  perplexed  because  he  feels  that  he 
must  begin  family  prayer  the  moment  he  becomes 
a  Christian.  A  student  knows  that  if  he  gets  an 
education  he  will  have  to  be  a  preacher.  A  mother 
understands  that  she  must  dress  her  children  more 
modestly,  and  in  some  cases  change  their  compan- 
ionships and  alter  their  amusements,  the  moment 
she  joins  the  church.  A  business  man  sees  that  he 
will  be  compelled  to  break  up  his  partnership,  and 
possibly  relinquish  a  profitable  business,  if  he  de- 
clares for  Christ.  A  young  girl  is  afraid  of  the 
anger  of  her  ungodly  father  if  she  says  she  means  to 
lead  a  religious  life.  In  the  bright  book,  *' School- 
days at  Rugby,"  little  Arthur  is  dreadfully  troubled 
to  know  what  he  will  do  when  he  goes  to  bed  be- 
fore all  the  other  boys,  for  he  supposes  they  will 
laugh  when  they  see  him  kneel  down  to  say  his 
prayers. 

These  are  what  is  meant  here  by 


no  STUDIES  IN  MARK'S  GOSPEI.. 

And  the  verse  says  plainly  that  they  are  not  to  be 
dreaded,  nor  shirked,  nor  denied;  they  are  to  be 
taken  up  and  borne  bravely  and  cheerfully. 

III.  So  we  find  a  final  lesson  in  the  verse:  each 
inquirer  must  be  told  that  when  he  has  denied  him- 
self and  taken  up  his  daily  cross,  he  is  to  go  on  and 
*' follow"  Jesus  wherever  he  leads.  Hence  there 
are  two  things  involved:  study  of  him,  and  imita- 
tion. 

1.  For  help  in  our  careful  study  of  Jesus  Christ, 
four  pictures  of  his  life  have  been  furnished  us. 
Now  each  person  must  examine  for  himself.  We 
want  to  see  how  tenderly  he  wept  with  those  sor- 
rowing sisters  at  Bethany,  and  how  brave  and  tear- 
less he  was  in  his  own  troubles.  We  need  to  watch 
how  often  he  prayed  and  how  patiently  he  taught 
the  multitudes.  We  are  to  learn  of  him,  for  he  was 
meek  and  lowly  of  heart.  See  how  he  controlled 
his  temper  under  provocation,  how  gentle  and  kind 
he  was  to  the  poor,  how  forgiving  he  showed  him- 
self to  his  enemies,  how  true  to  his  friends. 

2.  But  mere  knowledo-e  of  his  sweetness  and 
beauty  of  character  would  not  be  enough;  we  must 
become  like  him  ourselves.  Every  Christian  has 
to  be  patient  and  assiduous  in  removing  all  the  hin- 
drances, so  that  the  Sun  of  Righteousness  may 
shine  upon  him  with  its  clear  and  luminous  bright- 
ness. He  must  pray  for  help,  and  try  to  grow  more 
like  his  Model.  And  then  perhaps  some  day  he 
will  be  surprised  to  discover  that  his  life  shines  as 
Moses'  face  did  when  he  came  down  from  the 
mountain  where  he  had  seen  God. 


A   CHILD   FOR   A   TKXT.  Ill 

XI. 

A  CHILD  FOR  A  TEXT. 

"  Whosoever  shall  receive  oxeok  such  children  in  my  name, 
receiveth  me:  and  whosoever  shall  receive  me,  receiveth 

NOT  ME,  BUT  HIM  THAT  SENT  ME." — Mark  9:37. 

The  passage  upon  the  study  of  wliicli  we  now 
enter  is  certainly  severe  in  its  warnings  and  intri- 
cate in  its  terms  of  speech.  It  seems  to  say  that  the 
Ahnighty  God,  who  created  the  human  race  and  set 
the  solitary  in  families,  holds  every  adult  person  re- 
sponsible for  the  present  well-being  and  the  future 
salvation  of  even  the  youngest  creatures  that  can 
enter  the  church  now,  or  that  in  his  grace  can  be 
redeemed  by  Christ. 

It  is  best  to  be  clear  and  orderly  from  the  start; 
so  we  may  just  as  well  confine  our  exposition  for  a 
single  discourse  to  these  three  particulars,  all  of 
which  are  announced  to  us  in  the  course  of  three  cr 
four  verses  in  the  closest  connection: 

I.  The  property-value  of  virtuous  and  whole- 
some offspring  in  Christian  households: 

II.  The  organic  relation  of  all  Christian  infants 
to  what  is  called  here  ''  the  kingdom  of  heaven:" 

III.  The  principle  on  which  children  should  be 
received  by  Christian  parents  to  the  full  glory  of 
God. 

There  is  little  more  needed  than  simple  explana- 
tion and  illustration  as  we  take  up  these  in  turn. 
I.   By  the  property-value  of  virtuous  and  whole- 


112  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

some  offspring,  I  mean  the  real  worth  and  welcome 
of  children  in  any  well-ordered  household.  *'Lo, 
children  are  the  heritage  of  the  Lord.  Happy  is  the 
man  that  hath  his  quiver  full  of  them." 

Hanging  on  the  wall  of  my  study,  in  full  view  as 
I  write,  is  a  fine  photograph,  the  title  of  which  it 
may  be  interesting  to  some  of  my  young  readers  to 
translate  for  themselves,  *'  Covjielie  Montrant  ses  Bi- 
joux, '  * 

It  represents  a  courtly  and  beautiful  woman 
seated  at  a  slender  table.  She  is  most  gorgeously 
dressed,  and  positively  resplendent  with  rings, 
bracelets,  and  circlets  of  pearls.  Before  her  stands 
another  female,  plainly  adorned,  holding  two  noble 
boys  by  the  hand.  Anybody's  attention  would  be 
arrested  by  the  singular  contrast  in  the  apparel  of 
these  two  elderly  persons,  but  more  especially  by 
the  manly  mien  and  attitude  of  the  two  lads. 
There  is  that  in  their  countenances  which  rivets 
notice.  Each  seems  the  embodiment  of  a  hope  and 
the  realization  of  a  promise.  There  is  apparent  at  a 
glance  the  fact  that  they  have  been  admirably 
trained  in  the  past,  and  are  going  to  make  their 
mark  in  the  future.  Silently  enough  does  that 
exquisite  group  stand,  but  a  swift  imagination  in- 
stantly reads  its  meaning. 

But  not  the  picture,  the  story  is  what  I  want  for 
my  purpose  now.  Cornelia,  who  is  here  "showing 
her  jewels,"  was  the  daughter  of  Scipio  Africanus, 
left  at  the  death  of  her  husband  in  care  of  twelve 
children,  of  whom  she  sadly  lost  all  but  three.  One 
married  eventually,  and  two  sons  alone  remained  to 


A   CHILD   FOR  A   TEXT.  II3 

her  widowhood.  The  world  claimed  her  in  its 
proudest  circles  ;  wealth  lay  at  her  feet  ;  kings 
sought  her  in  a  new  marriage.  She  relinquished 
all  for  her  children.  And  so  carefully  did  she  rear 
them,  that  even  when  all  admitted  they  were  of  the 
loftiest  blood  and  of  the  happiest  dispositions,  it 
still  remained  confessed  among  the  Roman  histori- 
ans that  they  owed  more  of  their  excellence  to  edu- 
cation than  to  nature.  Of  course  they  bore  their 
father's  name,  and  according  to  the  custom  of  those 
times  were  called  "The  Gracchi." 

Now  the  story  runs  that  one  time  a  proud  lady 
from  Campania  came  to  make  her  a  visit.  It  ap- 
pears that  the  two  women  fell  to  talking  about 
ornaments  and  rich  robes  and  costly  stones.  The 
guest  must  have  led  the  way  in  such  a  conversa- 
tion, for  people  generally  love  most  to  speak  of  what 
they  possess ;  and  Cornelia  dressed  exceedingly 
plainly,  without  knot,  fillet,  or  necklace.  By-and- 
by  the  Campania  lady  abruptly  asked  her  where 
her  jewels  were.  The  Roman  mother  replied  she 
would  show  them  soon,  and  listlessly  kept  up  the 
foolish  gossip  to  gain  time  and  not  get  quite  off  the 
subject. 

She  was  waiting  for  the  boys  to  come  home  from 
school.  When  she  heard  their  rapid  step,  she  with- 
drew a  moment,  then  returned  with  her  sons,  one 
on  each  side,  as  in  my  picture,  and  tranquilly  said, 
"These  are  ;;?/ jewels!" 

Years  passed  on.  The  after  life  of  Tiberius  and 
Cains,  these  w^ere  their  names,  met  every  expecta- 
tion.    They  grew  up  among  the  best  men  of  the 


114  STUDIES    IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

nation.  Tliey  died  early,  but  she  had  the  extreme 
satisfaction  of  knowing  that  the  tears  of  a  mourning 
people  fell  in  the  grave  with  her  own.  And  when 
she  too  reached  the  end  of  her  life,  the  Roman  sena- 
tors raised  a  magnificent  statue  in  her  honor,  and 
placed  on  it  the  inscription,  "To  Cornelia,  mother 
of  the  Gracchi."  Thus  it  came  about  as  a  some- 
what curious  fact  that  a  parent  received  the  name 
of  her  offspring  as  being  even  worthier  than  her 
own. 

Just  now  we  happen  to  hear  much  about  the 
troublesomeness  of  children.  Some  of  us  think  we 
would  rather  pledge  ourselves,  if  a  new  picture 
were  to  be  outlined,  to  produce  three  or  four  Cam- 
panian  ladies  to  sit  for  the  model,  than  one  Cor- 
nelia. 

In  my  early  life,  I  remember  I  used  to  think 
there  was  something  weird  and  strange  in  a  book  I 
never  looked  into  then,  called  "  Prideaux's  Connex- 
ions." They  told  me  it  contained  the  history  of 
those  solemn  centuries  between  the  Old  and  the 
New  Testament.  There  was  a  kind  of  hush  in  my 
mind  when  I  thought  of  the  slow  fall  of  the  pro- 
phetic curtain  on  the  awful  words  of  Malachi! 
For  four  hundred  years,  now,  men  were  not  going 
to  hear  another  word  from  God!  When  should 
the  stillness  ever  be  broken  again  by  a  new  rev- 
elation? 

Perhaps  this  is  what  even  to  this  day  makes  the 
final  verse  of  the  Old  Testament  so  unspeakably 
suggestive:  "And  he  shall  turn  the  hearts  of  the  fa- 
thers to  the  children,  and  the  hearts  of  the  children 


A   CHII^D   FOR   A  TEXT.  II5 

to  their  fathers,  lest  I  come  and  smite  the  earth 
with  a  curse. ' ' 

We  must  lose  no  time  in  laying  alongside  of  this 
passage  in  Llark  that  which  is  parallel  to  it  in  Mat- 
thew's story.  We  wish  especially  to  notice  the  ex- 
quisite parable  used  by  our  Lord: 

''Take  heed  that  ye  despise  not  one  of  these 
little  ones:  for  I  say  unto  you,  That  in  heaven  their 
angels  do  always  behold  the  face  of  my  Father 
which  is  in  heaven.  For  the  Son  of  man  is  come 
to  save  that  which  was  lost.  How  think  ye  ?  If  a 
man  have  a  hundred  sheep,  and  one  of  them  be 
gone  astray,  doth  he  not  leave  the  ninety  and  nine, 
and  goeth  into  the  mountains,  and  seeketh  that 
which  is  gone  astray?  And  if  so  be  that  he  find  it, 
verily  I  say  unto  you,  he  rejoiceth  more  of  that 
sheep  than  of  the  ninety  and  nine  which  went  not 
astray.  Even  so  it  is  not  the  will  of  your  Father 
which  is  in  heaven  that  one  of  these  little  ones 
should  perish." 

Here  was  Jesus  Christ,  holding  a  little  boy  by 
the  hand,  and  saying.  He  is  certainly  "lost,"  but  I 
came  to  "save"  him;  saved  he  shall  be,  and  all 
that  are  like  him;  who  shall  hinder?  "Even  so  it 
is  not  the  will  of  your  Father  which  is  in  heaven 
that  one  of  these  little  ones  should  perish." 

So  then  we  have  the  full  suggestion.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  worth  of  a  child  in  its  promise  and  pros- 
pect of  a  fine  and  fruitful  manhood,  of  itself  so 
valuable  that  a  nation  has  a  thousand  times  in  his- 
tory honored  a  faithful  mother  for  her  splendid  gift 
to   the  race — over  and   above  all   that  is  the  fact 


ii6  studie;s  in  mark's  gospel. 

that,  even  if  a  baby  dies  before  it  has  reached  ma- 
turity in  years,  it  is  sure  to  be  saved  by  Immanuel's 
blood. 

11.  Such  a  statement  leads  us  on  at  once,  of  ne- 
cessity, to  inquire.  What  are  the  organic  relations  of 
infants  to  the  ' '  kingdom  of  God  "?  What  did  Jesus 
Christ  mean  when  he  said,  "Of  such  is  the  king- 
dom of  heaven"? 

Once  in  the  course  of  my  ministry  I  asked  a 
large  Bible-class  of  adult  men  and  women  this 
question,  as  we  were  studying  the  tenth  verse  of  the 
eighteenth  chapter  of  Matthew's  gospel  with  the 
connection: 

Did  Jesus,  when  he  mentioned  *'  little  ones"  in 
this,  as  well  as  in  the  sixth  verse,  mean  children  in 
years,  or  children  in  religious  experience — boys  and 
girls,  like  the  one  whose  hand  he  held,  or  only 
those  persons  who  had  just  become  proselytes, 
Christians  who  had  only  lately  confessed  him,  and 
were  as  3'et  immature  ? 

There  was  quite  a  serious  silence  at  this  mo- 
ment, but  I  paused  quietly  for  a  reply.  Some  said 
one  thing;  some  another.  One  told  a  little  story 
about  a  pupil  in  an  institution  for  the  deaf  and 
dumb  who  wrote  on  the  blackboard,  in  answer  to 
the  hard  puzzle  of  a  visitor,  "  Short  of  information 
on  that  point!"  But  one  quiet  man,  reading  over 
the  sixth  verse,  found  the  words,  "these  little  ones 
which  believe  in  me;"  and  he  said,  "Of  course 
those  could  not  be  mere  children  in  years." 

To  this  some  one  replied  suddenly,  "  But  what 
he  had  there  before  them  was  truly  a  little  boy;  and 


A   CHILD    FOR   A   TEXT.  II7 

lie  declared,  Whosoever  shall  humble  himself  as  tJiis 
little  child,  and  he  said,  Whoso  shall  receive  ow^sitch 
little  child ;  he  must  have  meant  real  young  boys 
and  girls.  It  seems  to  me  Jesus  could  not  have 
meant  that  Christians  were  children,  but  that  chil- 
dren were  Christians,  in  the  sense  that  Christ 
came  to  save  every  one  of  them,  they  were  all  his; 
anybody  that  received  a  little  child,  received 
him:' 

It  became  necessary  for  me  to  call  attention  to 
one  of  the  most  interesting  usages  of  language  at 
the  time  when  the  New  Testament  was  written. 
Little  children,  too  young  to  put  forth  any  intellect- 
ual act  of  faith,  were  yet  called  believers.  It  was 
quite  in  keeping  with  the  custom  that  our  Saviour 
spoke  of  "such  as"  that  little  boy,  when  he  added, 
"which  believe  in  me."  Illustrations  could  be 
found  everywhere  in  early  Christian  literature.  But 
the  best  to  hand  just  now  I  thought  I  could  bring 
them  from  the  inscriptions  upon  tombs. 

I  had  then  a  book  on  my  table  which  I  had  been 
reading  with  great  interest.  I  had  returned  from  a 
journey  over  the  sea  only  a  few  weeks  before,  and 
I  had  studied  the  old  slabs  which  had  been  brought 
up  from  the  galleries  of  the  catacombs  and  arranged 
in  one  of  the  rooms  of  the  Vatican  IMuseum. 

It  was  very  easy  to  select  these  epitaphs  and 
others: 

"Here  lies  Sosimus,  a  believing  child  of  be- 
lieving parents  [fidelis  ex  fidelibus) ;  he  lived  two 
years,  one  month,  and  twenty-five  days." 

"Here  is   buried   Achilla,   a  neophyte   (newly 


Il8  STUDIES   IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

planted;  see  Romans  6:  5),  dying  aged  one  year  and 
five  months." 

*'Here  rests  in  peace  Urcia  'Florintma^  ^deli's 
(a  believer  or  a  faithful);  she  lived  five  years,  eight 
months,  and  eight  days." 

**To  Pisentus,  an  innocent  {innocens)^  living 
one  year,  eight  months,  and  thirteen  days;  a  neo- 
phyte." 

That  is  to  say,  children  of  Christians  were  called 
often  Christian  children.  Our  Saviour  seems  merely 
to  have  accepted  the  current  methods  of  speech  as 
to  the  name  he  applied;  he  certainly  was  talking  of 
boys  and  girls.  What  he  had  there  before  his  dis- 
ciples (a  sort  of  object-teaching,  as  usual  with  him) 
was  not  a  feeble  believer,  or  a  late  and  immature 
convert,  but  a  little  live  child.  An  interesting, 
though  not  altogether  reliable,  tradition  of  ecclesi- 
astical history  declares  that  this  lad,  when  he  grew 
up,  became  the  martyr  Ignatius,  and  was,  in  the 
dreadful  persecution,  thrown  to  the  wild  beasts, 
and  perished  at  the  Coliseum  at  Rome. 

Almost  all  the  creeds  of  Christendom  unite  in 
this  one  article,  and  record  it  as  the  fixed  belief  of 
the  churches  of  every  name,  that  all  little  c/iildren^ 
dying  before  they  have  reached  the  years  of  wilful  sin^ 
are  redeemed  by  tJie  precious  blood  of  yesiis  Christ. 

Here  some  one  interrupted  me  to  suggest  that 
this  would  not  make  it  so;  the  world  might  be  mis- 
taken. 

To  which  I  answered  that  nothing  was  more 
settled  than  that  God  had  promised  to  be  with  his 
people  in  all  ages  by  the  presence  of  his  Spirit; 


A   CHII.D   FOR   A   TEXT.  II9 

he  would  guide  them  into  "all  truth,"  and  he 
would  show  them  "  things  to  come."  If,  therefore, 
all  the  Christians  in  the  world,  and  everywhere, 
and  always,  believed  that  the  Scriptures  taught  a 
certain  doctrine,  we  might  consider  it  as  a  revealed 
truth  of  God.  (I  did  not  choose  to  quote  the  Latin 
rule — ab  omnibus^  tibiqiie^  semper.^ 

One  formula  is  as  good  as  another  for  illustra- 
tion. Take  the  words  of  that  one  which  has  been 
most  misquoted  and  most  misunderstood: 

"Elect  infants,  dying  in  infancy,  are  saved  by 
Christ  through  the  Spirit,  who  worketh  when  and 
where  and  how  he  pleaseth." 

When  I  quoted  this,  I  perceived,  by  a  slight  stir 
of  feeling,  that  more  than  curiosity  was  awakened. 
I  went  on  to  say  in  comment  that  infants  were 
included  in  the  primal  condemnation  of  our  race  by 
110  intelligent  act  or  consent  of  their  own.  They 
never  heard  of  Adam.  There  was  no  antecedent 
improbability  in  the  way  of  their  being  cleansed 
from  it,  by  no  intelligent  act  or  consent  of  their 
own,  should  they  never  have  heard  of  Christ.  No- 
body could  be  saved  without  the  atonement.  As  to 
the  method  of  its  application  to  unconscious  babes, 
no  information  has  been  given.  But  Jesus  said 
two  things:  that  "little  ones"  were  "lost,"  and 
he  came  to  "save"  them.  This  is  precisely  what 
some  creeds  say,  this  one  in  particular. 

Again  came  that  calm,  respectful,  but  persistent 
voice  from  the  class,  "Yes;  but  it  says  elect  in- 
fants." 

If  it  had  said  "young  children,"  as  Jesus  did,  I 


I20  STUDIES   IN    MARK'S   GOSPEI.. 

replied,  would  we  have  to  say  some  cliildren  are 
not  young?  If  it  had  said  beloved  infants,  would 
we  be  compelled  to  infer  some  were  unbeloved? 
Are  we  driven  to  suppose  that  the  framers  of  the 
Westminster  Confession  considered  some  children 
to  be  non-elect  ? 

Historically,  that  is  not  the  fact.  They  meant 
no  such  implication.  The  curious  habit  of  those 
excellent  men  seems  to  have  been  just  to  state  a 
thing,  and  draw  no  inferences  and  forestall  no  infer- 
ences from  it.  And  in  their  anxiety  to  assert  that 
all  infants  were  saved,  and  to  give  the  reason  for  it 
in  the  same  compact  formula,  they  did  leave  room 
for  this  ingenuity  of  cavil.  Still,  all  they  said  was 
that  every  infant  needs  to  be  saved,  no  infant  can 
be  saved  except  through  the  atonement,  and  each 
infant  who  is  saved  is  a  proof  and  an  illustration  of 
the  sovereign,  undeserved,  and  unconstrained  grace 
of  God. 

So  let  us  understand  that  Jesus  was  speaking  at 
that  moment  of  actual  children,  such  as  was  the 
boy  he  used  for  his  text;  "little  ones  that  believe 
in  me^^  were  X\VCi^  faitJifuls  of  those  in  tJie  faith  as 
children  of  believers,  under  training  and  prayer  and 
home  influences  for  good.  It  was  concerning  these 
that  he  said  those  strange  words:  "Of  such  is  the 
kingdom  of  heaven."  It  is  almost  impossible  to 
find  an  expression  elastic  enough  to  cover  the  sig- 
nificance of  a  score  of  passages  in  which  the  Mftg- 
dom  of  heaven  and  the  kingdom  of  God  appear  as 
forms  of  familiar  speech.  Sometimes  the  term 
means  the  church;  sometimes  it  means  the  spiritual 


A   CHILD   FOR   A   TEXT.  121 

government  of  God  within   a  single  heart;  some- 
times it  means  the  celestial  city. 

It  certainly  refers  to  a  dominion  of  religious 
quality,  reaching  on,  from  original  rebelliousness 
and  corruption,  to  conversion  and  measurable  sanc- 
tification,  and  then  reaching  along  in  mysterious 
splendor  far  away  towards  the  presence  of  the  re- 
deemed on  hi2:h.  It  must  be  considered  as  a  real 
kingdom  set  up  in  the  heart,  organized  into  the 
church,  and  perfected  in  heaven,  where  the  King 
already  resides.  Thus  its  sway  extends  over  nature, 
grace,  and  glory.  Children,  therefore,  are  its  infant 
subjects  and  have  the  right  of  citizenship  in  it,  and 
dying  in  infancy,  they  die  true  members  of  God's 
great  invisible  church  on  the  earth. 

III.  Many  questions  yet  remain,  but  we  cannot 
delay  to  consider  them  now.  We  must  come  to  the 
third  particular  mentioned  in  the  outset:  the  prin- 
ciple on  which  Christian  infants  are  to  be  received 
by  believers.  "And  he  took  a  child  and  set  him 
in  the  midst  of  them;  and  when  he  had  taken  him 
in  his  arms  he  said  unto  them.  Whosoever  shall 
receive  one  of  such  children  in  my  name,  receiveth 
me;  and  whosoever  shall  receive  me,  receiveth  not 
me,  but  him  that  sent  me." 

It  would  seem  from  this  that  our  whole  piety  is- 
at  stake.  Our  children  represent  Jesus  Christ  in 
person,  and  not  him  alone,  but  his  Father  likewise. 
If  we  do  not  receive  these  little  ones  as  they  ought 
to  be  received,  then  we  do  not  receive  Christ  him- 
self aright;  and  the  peril  appears  very  alarming: 

"Whoso  shall  receive  one  such  little  child  in  my 

6 


122  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPEI.. 

name,  receiveth  ine.  But  whoso  shall  offend  one 
of  these  little  ones  which  believe  in  me,  it  were 
better  for  him  that  a  millstone  were  hanged  about 
his  neck  and  that  he  were  drowned  in  the  depths 
of  the  sea.'* 

The  main  inquiry,  therefore,  is  as  to  what  we 
shall  do  with  the  children  committed  to  us.  The 
Scripture  word  is  '^receiveth."     What  does  it  im- 

ply? 

Some  receive  children  in  the  name  of  necessity. 
They  must  be  endured  as  needful  nuisances  until 
they  are  grown  up.  Most  of  their  training  is  to  be 
paid  for  or  shirked.  Oftentimes  children  are  the 
least  to  be  noticed  and  the  last,  of  all  classes  of 
human  beings  possessed  of  souls  and  destined  for 
eternity. 

Some  receive  them  in  the  name  of  the  world. 
A  father  is  suddenly  elate  with  the  thought  that 
now  he  has  a  boy,  the  firm  shall  never  lose  a  part- 
nei-,  the  family  stock  shall  still  have  a  scion  to  keep 
up  the  homestead.  A  mother  rejoices,  as  she  clasps 
her  daughter  to  her  bosom,  that  there  will  be  an 
entrance  made  into  society  by-and-by,  over  which 
she  eiven  now  yearns  with  mingled  tenderness  and 
pride.  So  the  infant  begins  its  career  of  gayety 
and  greed. 

Some  receive  children  in  the  name  of  them- 
selves. Men  and  women  take  a  selfish  pleasure  in 
their  own  offspring.  They  love  to  accept  their 
caresses.  God  have  mercy  on  such  as  feel  nothing 
of  this  sensibility  I  But  if  the  feeling  goes  no  higher 
than  this,  they  cherish  living  beings  only  as  toys. 


A  CHILD   FOR   A   TEXT.  123 

The  true  principle  is  found  in  the  statement  that 
children  are  to  be  received  into  protection  from  the 
devil  and  into  consecration  unto  Christ.  Let  every 
young  Christian  child  be  borne  at  once  beneath  the 
dawn  of  the  Sun  of  Righteousness,  so  that  the  day- 
spring  from  on  high  may  visit  it  early.  God  seems 
to  say  to  every  Christian  parent  as  Pharaoh's  daugh- 
ter said  to  the  mother  of  Moses,  *'Take  this  child 
away  and  nurse  \\.for  me T^ 

There  is  something  wonderfully  impressive  in 
this  thought  of  our  joint  ownership  with  the  Al- 
mighty in  the  care  of  our  little  ones  when  we  have 
received  them  in  his  name.  Our  families  would  be 
better  nurseries  for  truth  and  holiness  if  we  only 
kept  such  a  purpose  in  view  as  this,  and  we  should 
grow  nobler  ourselves.  There  is  nothing  higher  in 
human  nature  than  fatherhood  and  motherhood. 
The  head  of  a  Christian  household  is  royaller  than 
the  ruler  of  a  kingdom.  Never  was  England's 
King  George  more  princely  than  when  he  was 
speaking  of  his  children  to  the  friends  whom  he 
trusted.  Once  a  fine  lady  was  talking  jocosely  to 
him  about  her  native  country  Scotland.  Suddenly 
the  king  grew  serious  and  became  silent.  She,  sup- 
posing that  he  was  impressed  by  her  remarks  con- 
cerning that  part  of  his  kingdom,  said,  "Your  maj- 
esty, I  presume,  is  thinking  of  the  Land  of  the 
North.'*  He  paused  for  a  few  moments,  then  said 
gently,  with  his  eyes  moist  with  tears,  "The  prin- 
ces are  abroad  just  now,  and  I  was  entreating  God 
to  protect  and  bless  my  dear  boys  !'* 


124  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEI.. 


XII. 


STUMBLING-STONES  AND   MII.Iv-STONES. 

"And  whosoever  shall  offend  one  of  these  little  ones 

THAT   believe   IN   ME,  IT  IS  BETTER   FOR  HIM  THAT  A  MILL-STONE 
AVERE   HANGED   ABOUT   HIS   NECK  AND   HE   WERE   CAST   INTO   THE 

SEA." — Mark  9:42. 

Enough  has  been  said  111  a  previous  discourse 
to  make  it  quite  clear  that  our  Lord  was  talking 
about  infant  children  at  the  time  in  which  he  spoke 
these  words  to  his  disciples.  We  have  seen  also 
that  an  indescribable  advantage  is  given  to  those  of 
such  tender  years;  the  Saviour  loves  a  child  be- 
cause it  belongs  to  him  and  is  a  subject  of  the 
kingdom  of  heaven.  But  an  interesting  note  has 
come  to  me  just  now,  which  calls  for  a  reopening 
of  the  study  so  soon  closed,  and  perhaps  so  abruptly: 

*'My  Dear  Pastor:  I  am  always  afraid  of  ap- 
pearing in  any  degree  captious;  but  I  am  frank  to 
say  that,  after  the  discussion  was  over  some  weeks 
ago,  concerning  the  salvation  of  children,  I  did  not 
feel  fully  satisfied.  Is  there  no  definite  Scripture 
argument  on  this  point?  Are  we  left  to  mere  con- 
jecture, in  the  absence  of  all  texts?  I  have  studied 
the  standards  of  our  church,  and  they  give  me  little 
comfort.  The  phraseology  there  awakes  cavils  in- 
stead of  hopes.  Do  tell  me  something  in  the  Bible 
to  read  and  remember." 

Nobody  has  any  right  to  find  fault  with  this 
continued  eao^erness  and  uneasiness  in  the  mind  of  a 


STUMBUNG-STONES   AND    MUX-STONES.       1 25 

parent  bereaved.  Death  in  a  household!  How 
awful  the  thought,  and  yet  how  frequent  is  the 
sight!  A  lightning-stroke  in  the  forest  were  less 
devastating — a  wild  beast's  incursions  in  a  garden, 
the  raid  of  an  enemy  into  a  hamlet  of  peace. 

But  suppose  death  takes  a  child  instead  of  an  old 
man  full  of  years — what  then?  Worse  and  worse, 
you  answer.  What  has  the  poor  babe  done  to  de- 
'Serve  it?  See  it  now,  in  imagination,  as  yesterday 
it  sat  on  its  mother's  knee,  every  quivering  muscle 
playing  with  wild  excitement  under  the  rare  and 
rollicking  sport  of  leaping  and  crowing  with  you; 
eyes  flashing,  dimples  twinkling,  hands  flying,  all 
alive  with  reckless  overflow  of  infant  fun.  Now  go 
and  see  how  still  it  is,  under  the  white  cloth,  chill 
and  silent,  and  withal  so  little  too,  so  harmless,  so 
inoffensive.  In  the  very  candor  of  common  sense, 
does  it  not  seem  as  if  a  mistake  had  been  made 
somewhere?  If  it  had  to  die,  did  it  have  to  live? 
Why  was  it  born?  Half  the  human  family  die 
under  five  years  old.     What  a  waste! 

Now,  it  must  be  admitted,  though  these  inqui- 
ries put  in  such  a  murmuring  way  are  very  hetero- 
dox, they  are  also  very  human.  But  let  us  not  be  in 
haste.  This  morning  I  saw  a  poor  brute-mother 
driven  through  the  street,  lowing  piteously  for  her 
offspring,  which  was  led  away  to  the  block.  On 
my  walk  here  to-night  I  passed  a  willow-tree 
which  seemed  very  sad  with  the  plaintive  chirp  of  a 
sparrow  over  its  mate. 

"  The  air  is  full  of  farewells  to  the  dying 
And  mourninirs  for  the  dead." 


126  STUDIES  IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

But  we  are  neither  birds  nor  cattle.  God  loves 
his  own  image  in  man,  respects  it  better  than  we 
think.  There  is  that  which  our  friend  inquires  for 
in  the  revealed  Word,  and  when  it  is  brought  before 
our  understanding  we  shall  rest. 

We  might  as  well  take  up  the  story  of  this  same 
chapter  again.  There  remain  several  considera- 
tions to  which  not  much  thought  could  be  given 
before.  And  above  everything  else  we  must  use 
some  parallel  passages,  specially  that  in  Matthew's 
gospel;  for  we  need  to  comprehend  what  Jesus  said 
about  stumbling-stones  and  guardian  angels  and  a 
few  other  thing^s  besides. 

I.  Let  us  begin  with  that  startling  declaration 
about  the  mill-stone.  I  have  chosen  the  text  from 
the  ordinary  version;  but  we  must  observe  that 
the  new  Revision  has  suggested  some  interesting 
changes  in  the  rendering.  For  example,  the  famil- 
iar word  "offends"  and  the  other  like  it,  "offen- 
ces," quite  disappear.  Thus  the  verse  reads,  as 
changed,  in  the  gospel  of  Mark:  "And  whosoever 
shall  cause  one  of  these  little  ones  that  believe  on 
me  to  stumble,  it  were  better  for  him  if  a  great 
mill-stone  were  hanged  about  his  neck  and  he  were 
cast  into  the  sea."  And  thus  the  same  reads  in 
Matthew  also:  "And  whoso  shall  receive  one  such 
little  child  in  my  name  receiveth  me:  but  whoso 
shall  cause  one  of  these  little  ones  which  believe  on 
me  to  stumble,  it  is  profitable  for  him  that  a  great 
mill-stone  should  be  hanged,  about  his  neck  and 
that  he  should  be  sunk  in  the  depth  of  the  sea."  ' 

Of  course,  we  have  been  told  a  hundred  times 


STUMBLING-STONES    AND    MILL-STONES.       127 

that  to  offend  here  means  to  do  what  would  cause  to 
stumble,  what  would  create  a  scandal;  and  a  scandal 
is  a  stumbling-block  or  a  stumbling-stone.  And 
most  persons  will  be  glad  when  the  time  comes 
for  these  alterations  to  appear  in  the  Bibles  with  the 
accurate  translation.  To  offend  a  child,  in  the 
sense  noted,  means  to  cause  one  of  God's  little  ones 
to  stumble  on  the  road  to  heaven  so  as  to  fail  of  en- 
tering; no  possible  reference  can  be  intended  as  to 
merely  crossing  a  child's  will,  or  disappointing  its 
wishes,  in  the  course  of  parental  government. 
While  human  nature  is  what  it  is,  children,  like 
everybody  else,  will  have  to  be  fretted,  and  perhaps 
irritated  or  even  affronted,  for  their  own  improve- 
ment and  best  good.  The  warning  put  forward 
here  does  not  touch  that  at  all. 

The  real  force  of  the  teaching  that  our  Lord 
offers  is  found  in  the  fact  that  God  loves  these  little 
ones,  and  purposes  to  cleanse  them  from  all  taint  of 
sin  received  in  their  nature  at  the  Fall,  to  arouse 
their  ambition  for  a  true,  pure  life  of  loyal  love  to 
himself,  to  keep  them  in  the  ways  of  pleasantness 
and  the  paths  of  peace,  and  ultimately  to  lead  them 
safe  into  heaven  by  his  persistent  grace.  And  nei- 
ther men  nor  devils  are  permitted  to  hinder  him  in 
this  determined  plan.  Two  effective  processes  of 
protection  he  openly  discloses  in  this  chapter.  One 
he  is  now  describing,  the  other  he  touches  after- 
wards. 

To  ''  cause  one  of  these  little  ones  to  stumble" 
is  to  lay  some  obstacle,  some  small  stone  or  the  like, 
in  the  path  they  are  following,  so  as  they  shall  trip 


128  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEU 

over  it  and  fall  into  wrong-doing  or  wrong  associa- 
tions. Such  an  act  is  perilous,  and  Jesus  Christ 
says  it  shall  be  punished  in  each  case:  "  it  must  be 
that  the  occasions  of  stumbling  come,"  for  charac- 
ter must  be  tested,  and  discipline  will  be  needed  for 
every  soul,  young  or  old;  "but  woe  to  that  man 
through  whom  the  occasion  cometh!" 

Then  follows  a  figure  of  speech  by  which  is  in- 
dicated the  severity  of  divine  retribution;  and  I  do 
not  hesitate  to  say  that  it  seems  to  me  one  of  the 
most  weird  and  awful  metaphors  in  the  whole  Bible 
as  a  picture  of  hopeless  destruction.  It  is  likely 
that  a  sort  of  antithesis  is  meant  to  be  hinted  in  the 
contrast  between  such  a  small  stone  as  would  be  ne- 
cessary to  overthrow  a  child  and  such  a  large  one 
as  w^ould  be  used  in  executing  a  criminal.  A 
"mill-stone"  corresponds  to  a  "stumbling-stone" 
in  the  rhetorical  use  of  the  words.  "A  gfreat  mill- 
stone"  is  the  expression  in  the  Revision,  and  the 
margin  reads  "mill-stone  turned  by  an  ass:"  the 
reference  is  to  the  donkey-mill  as  opposed  to  the 
hand-mill,  which  of  course  w^as  much  smaller  in 
weight  and  size.  Drowning  was  a  singular  form  of 
capital  punishment  not  used  among  the  Jews,  but  so 
familiar  among  the  other  nations  around  that  the 
practice  gave  origin  to  a  proverb  signifying  utter 
ruin. 

We  are  told  that,  in  order  to  put  a  test  to  any 
metaphor,  we  must  make  a  picture  of  it.  We  seem 
to  see  a  culprit  already  condemned,  standing  on  a 
precipice,  just  before  he  is  cast  off  the  rocky  edge 
into  the  ocean  beneath.     His  neck  is  held  fast  in 


STUMBLING-STONKS  AND  MII.I.-STONES.       1 29 

the  hole  at  the  centre;  he  is  not  bearing  the  mill- 
stone, it  is  bearing  him  instead.  It  is  fastened 
around  him;  this  word  "hung"  is  the  one  em- 
ployed when  descriptions  are  given  of  a  criminal 
actually  bound  or  nailed  to  the  cross  of  crucifixion; 
he  cannot  get  away  from  the  tree.  We  witness  the 
dreadful  plunge,  and  shudder  as  we  notice  how  the 
tremendous  stone  strikes  the  water.  Imagination 
adds  what  is  unseen  to  complete  the  horror.  For 
we  think  of  the  long  journey  down  through  an  un- 
told waste  of  waves  to  the  bottom,  until  the  end  is 
reached  in  silence  and  mysterious  darkness.  The 
word  is  "depth" — the  depths  of  the  sea.  The 
water  closes  over  the  man.  No  one  ever  hears  of 
him  again. 

Now  understand:  after  all,  this  awful  punish- 
ment is  not  what  God  threatens;  that  is  something 
worse.  For  we  read  only  a  step  farther,  and  w^e 
find  that  God's  wrath  is  so  heavy  upon  one  who 
stumbles  a  little  child,  and  so  makes  him  lose 
heaven,  that  it  would  be  "  better  for  him  "  only  to 
be  "sunk  in  the  depth  of  the  sea"  instead. 

Now  we  begin  to  comprehend  why  this  chapter 
moves  on  so  solemnly  to  its  close  with  a  series  of 
warnings  about  "plucking  out  eyes"  and  "cutting 
off  arms,"  so  far  as  is  needful  to  keep  away  from 
hell-fire  and  to  cease  from  driving  others  into  it. 

Here  was  Jesus  Christ  holding  a  little  boy  by 
the  hand  and  talking  about  "  hell-fire"! 

He  says.  Any  one  who  receiveth  such  a  child  as 

this,  receiveth  me.      I  tell  you  it  is  a  tremendous 

thing  to  keep  out  of  hell  and  get  to  heaven.     If 

6* 


130  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

your  hand  hinders,  cut  .the  hand  off;  if  your  eye 
hinders,  pluck  it  out;  if  your  foot  hinders,  cast  it 
away  from  you.  And  I  tell  you  it  is  a  tremendous 
thing  to  get  a  child  out  of  hell  and  into  heaven; 
and  whoever  hinders  one  of  these  little  ones,  it  were 
better  for  him  to  be  flung  into  the  sea  with  a  mill- 
stone around  his  neck;  for  I  came  to  save  them; 
God  loves  them;  the  Son  of  Man  is  come  to  save 
that  which  was  lost. 

II.  Concerning  such  children,  then,  our  Lord 
speaks  when  he  says,  "Take  heed  that  ye  despise 
not  one  of  these  little  ones;  for  I  say  unto  you  that 
in  heaven  their  angels  do  always  behold  the  face  of 
my  Father  which  is  in  heaven." 

"Their  angels"  does  not  mean  their  souls,  the 
glorified  or  redeemed  spirits.  The  Word  of  God 
never  calls  a  man's  soul  his  angel.  Even  in  that 
one  verse  where  it  seems  to  occur  the  name  does 
not  mean  this.  When  Rhoda  told  the  disciples  that 
Peter  stood  at  the  door,  and  they  replied,  "  It  is  his 
angel,"  they  did  not  intend  to  intimate  that  Peter 
was  dead  and  this  was  his  ghost;  they  thought  it 
was  his  guardian  angel.  This  belief  was  fixed 
among  the  Jews;  and  they  in  their  vast  surprise 
explosively  uttered  it. 

It  is  heterodox  enough  to  teach  a  child  to  sing, 
"I  want  to  be  an  angel."  Angels  are  different  in 
many  respects  from  human  beings.  They  neither 
marry  nor  are  given  in  marriage.  They  were  all 
created  at  the  same  time.  No  angel  was  ever  a 
child;  no  child  will  ever  be  an  angel — to  say  that 
he  will  is  folly. 


STUMBUNG-STONES   AND   MILL-STOXES.      I3I 

Our  most  careful  expositors  agree  that  Jesus 
refers  directly  in  this  verse  to  the  prevalent  popular 
conception  concerning  guardian  angels.  Elsewhere 
we  are  told  in  the  Bible  that  angels  are  ''minister- 
ing spirits,  sent  forth  to  minister  for  them  who  shall 
be  heirs  of  salvation."  And  the  promise  is  as  old 
as  the  Old  Testament  almost,  "He  shall  give  his 
angels  charge  over  thee,  to  keep  thee  in  all  thy 
ways;  they  shall  bear  thee  up  in  their  hands,  lest 
thou  dash  thy  foot  against  a  stone." 

This  is  the  other  process  of  efficient  protection 
afforded  by  God  himself  to  which  allusion  was  made 
before.  With  a  full  understanding  of  the  exposures 
of  little  ones,  the  Almighty  seems  also  here  to  have 
anticipated  the  New  Testament  in  the  figure  em- 
ployed in  the  Old.  He  uses  a  similar  form  of 
speech  as  to  the  peril  of  dashing  their  feet  "against 
a  stone." 

In  that  grand  moment  of  announcing  that  chil- 
dren are  heirs  of  salvation,  our  Lord  asserts  that 
they  are  put  under  watch  from  on  high. 

And  to  this  there  is  added  a  thought  of  exquisite 
significance  to  those  who  feel  ever  anxious  about 
their  little  ones.  The  angels  which  have  them  in 
special  charge  are  those  who  enjoy  the  nearest  favor 
of  God.  They  "do  always  behold  "  his  face.  This 
is  an  Eastern  figure.  To  behold  a  king's  face  de- 
notes exceeding  advancement  in  grades  of  honor 
near  his  person.  And  here  Jesus  says,  God  sends 
his  very  Presence  Angels  to  take  care  of  children. 
As  one  of  our  profoundest  commentators  says, 
"The  fundamental  idea  is  that  the  hisrhest  ancrels 


132  STUDIES    IN    mark's   gospel. 

of  God  in  heaven  represent  the  smallest  subjects  of 
his  kingdom  on  earth.  Who  is  like  unto  the  Lord 
our  God,  who  dwelleth  on  high,  who  humbleth 
himself  to  behold  the  things  that  are  in  heaven  and 
in  the  earth  !'* 

Matchless  comfort  there  is  in  all  these  reflections 
for  a  troubled  parent  of  a  child  !  If  he  lives,  God's 
angels  have  him  in  charge.  If  he  dies,  God  takes 
him  to  himself,  for  it  is  not  his  will  that  even  one 
of  them  all  should  perish. 

III.  For  this  is  our  third  and  final  considera- 
tion now:  the  positive  salvation  of  infant  children 
according  to  a  triumphant  declaration  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  himself  as  he  closes  this  passage  on 
which  we  have  been  dwelling  so  long. 

We  have  to  go  out  of  the  gospel  of  Mark  to  find 
it,  but  it  follows  the  parable  we  have  already  quoted 
from  Matthew: 

*'  Even  so  it  is  not  the  will  of  your  Father  which 
is  in  heaven  that  one  of  these  little  ones  should 
perish." 

How  different,  in  the  case  of  children,  is  the 
confidence  we  feel,  and  have  a  right  to  feel,  at  a 
funeral !  When  a  mature  man  dies,  we  can  only 
say,  we  hope;  when  an  infant  dies,  we  can  say,  we 
know.  For  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  has  solemnly 
declared,  '^It  is  not  the  will  of  your  Father  which 
is  in  heaven  that  one  of  these  little  ones  should  per- 
ish." No  man  can  read  the  heart  of  another  man. 
We  can  hardly  read  our  own.  One  may  possibly 
say,  **Lord,  Lord,"  all  his  life,  and  yet  be  among 
those  to  whom  the  Lord  will  say,  "I  never  knew 


STUMBUNG-STONES  AND   MILL-STONES.       I33 

you."  Some  unrepented,  unforglven  sin,  like  the 
old  transgression  of  Moses,  may  be  enough  to  keep 
one  out  of  the  land  of  promise.  That  is  why  we 
are  exhorted  to  make  our  calling  and  election  sttre. 
The  Bible  speaks  of  an  assurance  of  hope  and  an 
assurance  of  faith,  but  never  of  an  assurance  of 
knowledge.  One  can  have,  by  God's  grace,  so 
much  faith  as  to  feel  pretty  certain.  Some  can  go 
a  great  ways  in  that  and  enjoy  deservedly  a  mighty 
comfort  in  it.  But  for  most  of  us  the  same  stum- 
bling story  will  have  to  be  told.  Through  much 
tribulation  we  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  Chil- 
dren are  otherwise.  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is 
** of  such." 

And  so  when  w^e  gaze  up  through  the  clouds 
after  our  lost  child,  we  can  say,  as  did  David,  *M 
shall  go  to  him,  but  he  shall  not  return  to  me !" 


134  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospeu 

XIII. 
CHIIvDREN  IN  HEAVEN. 

"Suffer  the  little  children  to  come  unto  me,  and  forbid 

THEM  not:    for  OF  SUCH  IS  THE  KINGDOM  OF  GOD." — Mark  \0:\\, 

Visiting  one  day  among  my  congregation,  I  fell 
in  upon  one  of  our  families  in  whose  order,  intelli- 
gence, and  grace  I  very  much  rejoiced.  Years 
seemed  to  make  no  difference  with  those  people. 
Always  with  the  same  sparkle  of  gladness  they 
bade  their  pastor  welcome.  The  word  went  all 
over  the  house  in  five  minutes,  and  down  two  stairs 
at  a  time  came  little  flying  feet  from  the  nursery, 
and  soon  afterwards  the  slower,  life-weary  feet  of  the 
aged  grandmother.  None  of  them  would  ever  suffer 
me  to  go  away  without  my  greeting  and  my  prayer. 

One  day  as  I  sat  there  with  a  dear  young  girl  in 
my  lap,  there  arose  a  conversation  so  peculiar  in 
some  respects  that  I  went  home  and  wrote  it  down. 

The  mother  observed  that  her  little  daughter 
was  somewhat  less  exuberant  than  usual,  and  re- 
marked that  she  had  been  trying  to  comfort  her 
under  the  burden  of  a  great  sorrow  that  day.  Her 
favorite  bird  had  suddenly  died,  and  the  child's 
heart  was  almost  broken. 

*' And  would  you  believe,"  said  this  most  faith- 
ful and  gifted  woman,  *'  I  have  been  actually  at  my 
wits'  end  to  know  what  to  say!  When  the  baby 
died" — alas   for  the  shadow  that   flew  and   flitted 


CHILDREN    IN    HEAVEN.  I35 

unconsciously  across  tliat  dear  face  at  the  mere  rem- 
iniscence!— "  I  told  her  that  Jesus  had  taken  our 
infant  boy;  she  must  be  a  good  girl,  and  she  would 
certainly  have  her  brother  again,  for  he  was  safe 
now  all  this  time  in  heaven.  I  made  her  try  to 
think  of  him  as  we  do  ourselves,  as  if  he  was  only 
away  for  a  while.  But  when  it  comes  to  talking  to 
her  about  this  bird,  I  really  do  not  know  what  to 
say.  For  what  she  wants  is  to  have  it  back  again^ 
and  I  cannot  get  beyond  that!'^ 

I  can  hardly  say  now,  at  this  distance  of  time, 
why  this  should  have  moved  me  so.  I  put  the 
child  down  and  went  to  the  window  to  compose 
myself.  Then,  as  I  faced  the  mother  again,  I  could 
only  exclaim,  "Oh,  how  terrible  it  would  be  to  us, 
who  must  have  our  dead  back  again ^  if  there  were 
nothing  better  than  a  poetic  birds'^  heaven  to  think 
of!'' 

That  Christian  woman  looked  up  into  my  face 
and  said  quietly,  "When  I  strained  my  eyes  over 
the  edge  of  the  grave,  that  awful  October  afternoon, 
I  thought  for  a  moment  I  should  go  crazy.  But  I 
seemed  suddenly  to  see,  as  I  peered  through  my 
veil,  an  opening  on  the  other  side.  I  suppose  there 
must  have  been  a  vague  remembrance  of  those 
Scripture  words  about  Jesus  breaking  the  bars  asun- 
der. I  knew  he  did  not  break  the  bars  on  this 
side  ever;  but  a  rift  appeared  to  be  plain  beyond  it. 
And  so  I  have  imagined  ever  since.  When  we 
closed  up  the  grave  there  was  not  anybody  there. 
Our  little  boy  went  quietly  out  through  the  rough 
door,  as  Jesus  did.     I  have  only  now  to  return  to 


136  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

my  work  bravely,  labor  on  my  few  days,  get  these 
other  children  on  as  best  I  can.  Then  I  shall  get 
my  boy  back  again. ' ' 

^'  But,''  I  asked,  "  does  your  curiosity  never  at- 
tempt to  follow  him  ?  Do  you  never  find  yourself 
wondering  what  he  is  about  all  these  years?" 

*'  Oh,  yes,  I  know  what  you  mean,"  she  replied 
cheerfully.     ^'  I  guess  I  do! 

*  Day  after  day  I  think  what  he  is  doing 
In  those  bright  reahns  of  air.' 

I  admit  I  would  be  glad  to  know  more  if  I  might. 
But  it  gives  me  unspeakable  comfort  just  to  know 
he  is  safe.  Funeral  addresses  do  not  go  for  much 
generally,  I  suppose,  for  one's  grief  is  so  bewilder- 
ing. But  I  have  often  thought  over  what  you  said 
here  then." 

What  I  had  said  was  simple  enough.  I  remem- 
ber I  was  standing  where  I  could  see  the  sweet  face 
of  the  dead  child,  and  I  called  attention  to  its 
placidness.  It  seemed  to  wear  an  expression  of 
solid  comfort,  as  if  the  boy  knew  he  was  the  only 
being  in  the  house  out  of  danger.  No  more  likeli- 
hood of  trouble  now!  No  more  possibility  of  loss; 
no  more  danger  of  pain,  weariness,  or  woe;  no  more 
temptation;  no  more  sorrow;  no  more  sin! 

The  quotation  of  those  two  lines  from  Longfel- 
low's noble  poem  entitled  "Resignation"  made  the 
mother  go  on  with  the  other  verses: 

"  She  is  not  dead,  the  child  of  our  affection, 
But  gone  unto  that  school 
Where  she  no  longer  needs  our  poor  protection, 
And  Christ  himself  doth  rule. 


ClilLDRKN    IN    HKAVKN.  137 

"  In  that  great  cloister's  stillness  and  seclusion, 
By  guardian  angels  led, 
Safe  from  temptation,  safe  from  sin's  pollution, 
She  lives  whom  we  call  dead. 

"  Not  as  a  child  shall  we  again  behold  her ; 
For  when,  with  raptures  wild, 
In  our  embraces  we  again  enfold  her, 
She  will  not  be  a  child, 

"  But  a  fair  maiden  in  her  Father's  mansion. 
Clothed  with  celestial  grace  ; 
And  beautiful  with  all  the  soul's  expansion 
Shall  we  behold  her  face." 

Then  she  suddenly  put  to  me  the  question: 

*'Now  what  I  want  to  know  is,  do  you  accept 
the  philosophy,  or  theology,  or  what  not,  of  this 
statement?  Are  our  children  growing  away  from 
us  all  the  time?  If  their  school  is  so  much  better 
than  ours,  will  they  not  be  quite  ahead  of  us  when 
we  meet  them?" 

My  first  comment  on  this  inquiry  w^as  concern- 
ing its  exceeding  naturalness.  How  utterly  unap- 
peased  is  the  feeling  of  a  mother  for  her  child 
which  she  has  lost! 

I  once  removed  the  bodies  of  two  infant  sisters 
of  mine  to  a  new  burial  plot  we  had  purchased. 
When  at  the  evening  I  returned  from  the  work,  and 
told  our  mother  what  I  found  among  the  fragments 
of  the  coffins,  deposited  nineteen  years  before,  she 
quietly  inquired,  "Did  you  see  any  signs  of  hair? 
they  say  that  lasts  the  longest;  Martha  Louisa  had 
beautiful  hair."  And  in  the  twilight  there  we  sat, 
I  a  grown  man,  and  my  beloved  and  honored  mo- 
ther, aged  in  years  but  not  in  feeling,  looking  out 


138  STUDIES  IN   mark's  GOSPEL. 

across  tlie  summer  fields  and  far  on  across  other 
fields,  clear  across  till  eyes  fai-led,  and  faith  saw 
"sweet  fields  beyond  the  swelling  flood."  Then 
did  she  run  simply  and  garrulously  on,  in  the  dear 
egotism  of  her  reminiscences,  telling  how  the  chil- 
dren behaved  and  how  they  differed.  She  had  for- 
gotten nothing,  nothing,  never  could  forget.  And 
out  of  this  I  gained  the  grandest  lesson  I  ever 
learned.  I  never  read  the  verses  at  monthly  con- 
cert without  thinking  of  it:  "But  Zion  said,  The 
Lord  hath  forsaken  me,  and  my  Lord  hath  forgotten 
me.  Can  a  woman  forget  her  sucking  child,  that 
she  should  not  have  compassion  on  the  son  of  her 
womb?  Yea,  ^/ley  may  forget^  yet  will  I  not  for- 
get thee!  Behold,  I  have  graven  thee  upon  the 
palms  of  my  hands;  thy  walls  are  continually  before 
me." 

From  this  we  passed  to  discuss  the  inquiry  pre- 
sented by  the  poem:  Do  children  die  and  remain 
children;  or  are  they  "at  school,"  as  the  verse  says? 
Do  they  grow  in  stature  when  they  are  out  of  the 
body?  When  the  resurrection  body  comes  up  from 
the  tomb  will  it  be  a  child's  form  and  figure,  as  it 
was  when  it  was  deposited  there?  All  these  things 
we  talked  over. 

Some  points  were  beyond  our  reach.  But  if  I 
remember  rightly,  we  agreed  in  our  belief  that  the 
main  notion  of  the  poem  must  be  quite  correct. 
"The  child"  would  be  "a  fair  maiden  "  when  its 
face  should  be  seen  again. 

To  one  present  who  remarked  that  the  feeling 
was  disappointing   somewhat,  and    not   altogether 


CHILDREN    IN    HEAVEN.  I39 

welcome,  I  could  only  answer  that  many  a  parent 
in  this  life  wished  he  could  keep  his  infant  children 
from  growing  half  as  fast  as  they  did.  Why,  our 
three-year-old  pet  becomes  a  wilful  young  woman 
before  we  get  through  with  her.  We  wish  she 
might  stop  a  while  just  as  she  is. 

I  remember  once  in  the  studio  of  Hiram  Powers, 
in  Florence,  he  introduced  me  to  his  mature  daugh- 
ter, a  matronly  woman.  *'  Oh,  how  they  do  grow!" 
said  he.  Then  he  beckoned  me  to  a  desk  in  the 
corner,  and  took  out  from  enveloping  wool  in  a  box 
one  of  the  most  exquisitely  sculptured  hands  I  ever 
saw — a  mere  hand  up  to  the  wrist,  cut  in  purest 
marble — an  infant's  hand,  with  dimpled  fingers — 
matchlessly  beautiful.  "There,"  said  he;  "they 
get  away  so  fast  that  I  stopped  that  one,"  nodding 
his  head  towards  her,  "when  she  was  three  years 
old!" 

That  seems  to  be  the  only  way  to  stop  them. 
Now  all  this  is  a  mere  matter  of  personal  feeling; 
and  sentiments  will  differ  as  people  differ.  I  think, 
for  one,  I  should  love  better  in  heaven  to  sit  by  the 
side  of  a  grown  child  rather  than  an  infant;  indeed, 
by  a  mature  companion  rather  than  a  helpless  child. 
We  do  not  feel  dismayed  or  frightened  when  our 
boys  or  girls  come  home  to  us  after  long  education 
at  school  or  college.  We  rejoice  to  discover  that  all 
these  graces  of  mind  and  person  belong  to  us. 
They  disclose  themselves  with  a  sweet  surprise 
more  and  more  every  day. 

Oh,  I  long  to  see  one  face,  inexpressibly  dear  to 
me  once,  mourned  for  many  a  year  since! 


140  STUDIES    IN   mark's  GOSPEL. 

"  Ob,  for  the  touch  of  a  vanished  hand, 
And  the  sound  of  a  voice  that  is  still !" 

And  what  I  want  most  is  to  hear  what  he  will 
be  able  to  tell  me  of  these  days  that  have  passed. 
His  mind  has  been  enlarging,  his  soul  has  been 
growing  ;  every  weakness  will  have  passed  away. 
I  want  to  see  Jesus  of  Nazareth  first  of  all,  *'my 
blessed,  blessed  Master."  Then  next  to  that  I  am 
going  to  find  one  I  know  of.  I  hope  he  has  ad- 
vanced peerlessly.     I  am  not  afraid  of  that. 

"  There,  in  love's  unclouded  reign, 
Parted  hands  shall  meet  again  !" 

Our  lesson  from  all  this  is  to  push  on  as  fast  and 
as  far  as  we  can  here.  I  know  a  widow  with  an 
only  son,  whom  she  sent  to  the  university.  Pri- 
vately, during  his  absence  in  term-time,  she  pro- 
cured a  tutor  and  began  sturdy  study  herselfi  She 
said  she  knew  "he  would  be  far  ahead  of  her,  but 
she  believed  he  would  love  her  the  more,  the  more 
she  tried  to  keep  up  with  him."  He  that  would  en- 
ter the  kinirdom  of  heaven  must  do  it  as  a  little 
child.  It  is  grace  and  graces,  not  scholarship  and 
learning,  that  are  found  on  the  pages  of  celestial 
text-books.  These  we  may  in  our  measure  learn. 
Let  a  bereaved  believer  say  courageously,  "  I  have 
one  child  at  court;  I  have  given  a  maid  of  honor  for 
the  royal  presence-chamber.  Let  me  w^ait  a  little 
while,  and  I  shall  find  her  a  princess,  and  together 
we  may  serve  the  King!" 

Furthermore,  we  may  think  of  little  children  as 
happy  in  the  presence  of  God.  Wild,  dreamy  no- 
tions some  people  get,  under  the  half-maddening  in- 


CHILDREN    IN    HEAVEN.  I4I 

fluencc  of  bereavement.  Said  a  mother  to  me  once, 
^' What  sort  of  work  do  you  imagine  my  little  girl 
will  have  walking  around  among  the  patriarchs? 
She  was  always  a  timid  child;  she  will  cry  for  me 
half  the  time.  Oh,  what  a  terrible  business  this  is 
all  around!" 

We  cannot  transfer  our  notions  of  this  life  over 
into  that.  We  must  not  materialiije  everything  so, 
God  will  see  to  it  that  our  children  are  in  proper 
company  and  under  proper  care.  I  sincerely  hope 
they  are  all  as  ignorant  of  us  as  we  are  of  them; 
for  I  confess  I  often  fear  that,  if  they  know  how  we 
behave  here,  after  we  lose  them,  they  will  be  un- 
happy even  in  heaven,  if  that  can  be  so.  I  some- 
times prefer  to  think  that  the  redeemed,  mature  and 
young  both,  are  graciously  precluded  from  seeing 
much  of  what  transpires  here  on  the  earth.  They 
remember  us,  watch  for  us,  love  us,  and  will  know 
us  when  we  come.  But  I  ahnost  hope  the  knowl- 
edge ends  there;  for  they  will  have  lost  feeling 
for  our  suffering  if  they  continue  happy  while  they 
see  our  unchecked  tears. 

I  once  said  to  a  widow  that  she  was  mourn- 
ing too  deeply  and  too  long.  She  replied  that 
she  could  not,  of  herself,  right  up  at  once,  she  had 
so  leaned  upon  her  husband.  "What  did  he  use 
to  do?"  I  asked.  "Well,  what  you  would  call  a 
mere  nothing,"  she  answered;  "he  used  to  say  that 
it  made  him  very  unhappy  to  see  me  in  tears." 
"So  you  think  he  has  forgotten  all  that  nov/,"  I 
suggested,  "or  else  you  are  unkind  to  him." 

I  cannot  now  recall  at  length  half  that  was  said 


142  STUDIES   IN    MARK'S   GOSPKL. 

on  this  theme  that  evening  in  our  interview.  I 
only  mention  a  little  story  that  was  repeated  and 
touched  me  much. 

A  mother  lost  a  precious  little  girl;  grieved  ter- 
ribly ;  could  not  sleep ;  one  night  had  a  dream. 
She  saw  heaven.  There  seemed  to  be  a  procession 
before  the  throne.  A  great  throng  of  children  were 
marching,  each  crowned,  clad  in  white,  singing. 
All  bore  lamps,  lit  and  shining.  Among  them  at 
last  came  her  own  little  girl.  But  she  looked  trou- 
bled when  she  saw  her  mother,  though  she  loved 
her,  and  kissed  her  as  she  used  to  at  good-night 
prayers.  Then  the  w^atchful  woman  observed  also 
that  her  lamp  was  very  dim  compared  with  the 
others.  She  asked  her  why.  Then  the  dear  child 
replied,  *'They  tell  me  that  you  put  the  light  out 
with  your  tears!'' 


A   DEFKCTIVi:   CHARACTER.  143 

XIV. 

A  DEFECTIVE  CHARACTER. 

"Then  Jesus  beholding   him  loved  him,  and  said  unto  him, 
One  thing  thou  lackkst."— Mark  10:21. 

In  the  community  at  large  there  are  plainly  two 
classes  of  persons  concerning  whose  moral  charac- 
ter we  cannot  easily  make  a  mistake.  The  one  is 
made  up  of  those  who  are  practically  wicked,  grossly 
vicious  in  daily  life.  The  other  class  is  made  up  of 
Christians.  Devout  in  demeanor,  they  are  aiming, 
with  sometimes  a  poor  success  perhaps,  but  with 
unceasing  constancy,  to  know  the  right  and  do  it. 

But  between  these  two  classes  lies  a  third,  made 
up  of  such  as  appear  to  flit  in  manifest  fickleness 
from  one  extreme  to  the  other.  We  can  hardly 
venture  to  pronounce  upon  their  moral  posture  in 
the  sight  of  a  holy  God. 

Why  do  we  need  to  pronounce  ?  What  business 
is  it  of  ours  ?  Because  we  feel  it  to  be  our  duty  to 
exhort  all  men  to  obedience  and  bid  them  come  to 
love  and  peace  in  the  gospel;  and,  just  in  the  mo- 
ment of  approach,  these  persons  turn  suddenly  upon 
us  with  the  startling  question,  "What  have  we  been 
doing  now?" 

It  requires  a  careful  discrimination  to  avoid 
being  staggered  by  such  a  challenge.  One  needs 
to  keep  calm  and  clear  while  he  says,  **God  judges 
people  for  7wt  doing  as  well  as  for  doing."     Much 


144  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospel. 

there  may  be  in  any  given  young  man  to  admire, 
much  to  praise,  much  to  commend,  while  at  the 
same  moment  he  may  be  (in  his  character  before 
God)  faulty  and  wrong.  He  may  be  fatally  losing 
all  his  vantage-ground  of  virtue  just  through  lack 
of  decision  to  become  religious. 

I.  Now  in  the  narrative  before  us,  of  which  our 
text  forms  the  centre  and  the  key,  we  are  presented 
with  the  picture  of  one  of  this  medium  class  of  char- 
acters. The  incident  is  dramatic  and  striking.  It 
will  aid  much  in  our  analysis  if  we  carefully  read  it 
over  together. 

*'And  when  he  was  gene  forth  into  the  way, 
there  came  one  running,  and  kneeled  to  him,  and 
asked  him.  Good  Master,  what  shall  I  do  that  I  may 
inherit  eternal  life?"  Matthew  says  this  was  *'a 
young  man,"  and  Luke  adds  that  he  was  "a  ruler." 
Not  unlikely  he  was  an  arc /ion  in  some  synagogue, 
or  perhaps  a  peer  in  the  Sanhedrin.  "And  Jesus 
said  unto  him.  Why  callest  thou  me  good?  There 
is  none  good  but  one,  that  is  God."  Jesus  notices, 
first,  the  form  of  his  address,  then  takes  up  his  ques- 
tion. Here  is  an  incidental  argument  for  our  Lord's 
divinity.  Jesus  was  either  "God"  or  not  "good." 
"Thou  knowest  the  commandments,  Do  not  com- 
mit adultery.  Do  not  kill.  Do  not  steal,  Do  not  bear 
false  witness,  Defraud  not.  Honor  thy  father  and 
mother."  The  Jews  train  their  children  carefully 
in  all  the  moralities  prescribed  by  the  Decalogue. 
Our  Lord  quotes  only  the  second  table  of  the  law  in 
this  instance.  "And  he  answered  and  said  unto 
him,   Master,   all   these  have  I  observed  from  my 


A    DEFECTIVE   CHARACTER.  1 45 

youth."  Th3  young  man  could  answer  all  this 
easily.  He  had  most  likely  lived  with  the  strictest 
justice  as  between  man  and  man.  Matthew  adds, 
*' What  lack  I  yet?"  which  expression  Mark  omits. 
*'Then  Jesus,  beholding  him,  loved  him,  and  said 
unto  him.  One  thing  thou  lackest:  go  thy  way,  sell 
whatsoever  thou  hast,  and  give  to  the  poor,  and 
thou  shalt  have  treasure  in  heaven;  and  come,  take 
up  the  cross,  and  follow  me."  The  new  Revision 
omits  the  expression  *'take  up  the  cross"  as  not 
in  the  Greek.  Our  Lord  kindly  puts  in  one  encour- 
agement: the  ruler  should  have  his  money  again, 
to  be  paid  in  the  coin  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 
*'And  he  was  sad  at  that  saying,  and  went  away 
grieved,  for  he  had  great  possessions."  This  is  the 
end  of  the  story.  This  young  ruler  is  never  men- 
tioned again.  From  this  time  he  drops  out  of  his- 
tory and  we  know  him  no  more. 

II.  We  are  now  ready  to  take  up  the  study  of 
the  practical  lessons  suggested,  one  after  another, 
by  the  wdiole  incident. 

I.  In  all  God's  dealing  with  men  there  is  one 
cletnent  of  religions  character  for  zvJiich  he  invariably 
looks.  Men  are  influenced  by  a  showy  exterior; 
God  sees  the  heart.  "The  Lord  seeth  not  as  man 
seeth;  for  man  looketh  on  the  outward  appearance, 
but  the  Lord  looketh  on  the  heart." 

What  is  this  element?  A  comparison  of  the  dif- 
ferent parts  of  this  story  will  answer  the  question. 
We  must  also  connect  the  incident  closely  with  the 
previous  instruction  which  the  disciples  had  just 
been  receiving  on  the  subject  of  a  childlike  surren- 


146  STUDIES    IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

derof  one's  self  completely  to  Christ  as  the  Master 
(see  Mark  10: 15).  Immediately  after  this  the  stri- 
king and  dramatic  scene  is  presented  by  all  three 
evangelists.  It  offers  therefore  an  exceedingly  per- 
tinent illustration  of  the  exact  doctrine  our  Lord 
had  pressed.  ^'  A  little  child  "  has  a  single  peculi- 
arity as  its  controlling  characteristic:  it  loves,  trusts, 
and  obeys  its  parent.  Its  motive  of  life  is  sincere 
affection  for  him  above  anything  else.  This  is  what 
God  demands  of  his  children:  a  full,  filial  regard 
for  his  honor,  his  commandments,  and  his  affection- 
ate approval.  "A  son  honoreth  his  father  and  a 
servant  his  master:  if  then  I  be  a  father,  where  is 
mine  honor?  and  if  I  be  a  master,  where  is  my 
fear?  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts  imto  you.''  How 
do  we  know  the  young  ruler  did  not  possess  this? 
He  certainly  seems  like  a  thoughtful,  amiable,  vir- 
tuous person.  But  he  owned  that  he  still  lacked 
something.  Christ  told  him  he  lacked  ' '  one  thing. ' ' 
And  the  fact  was,  he  went  away  from  the  interview 
indiofuantlv  settinof  his  stubborn  heart  more  on  the 
•world  and  less  on  Jesus  than  when  he  came.  The 
expression  here  is,  "his  countenance  fell."  The 
word  "sad"  is  the  same  as  that  rendered  "lower- 
ing" when  the  Saviour  was  talking  about  the  sky. 
The  signs  of  a  storm  were  on  his  face,  the  gloom 
of  a  heavy  wrath  and  disappointment  was  in  his 
heart. 

2.  Let  us  take  up  a  second  lesson:  no  other  qual- 
ity of  mind  or  hearty  no  other  characteristic^  no  other 
grouping  of  elements  of  character^  can  atone  for  the  laclz 
cf  just  this  one. 


A   DEFECTIVE  CHARACTER.  147 

Piety  is  the  significant  disposition  which  regis- 
ters the  value  of  everything  else.  Take  any 
amount  of  ciphers  and  arrange  them  carefully  in  a 
line;  they  will  represent  nothing  till  you  place  a 
numeral  figure  at  their  head.  We  call  that  a  "sig- 
nificant" figure;  it  gives  reckoning  of  value  to  all 
the  others.  Now,  with  it  at  the  head,  each  one  of 
the  ciphers  increases  it  tenfold,  while  without  it  ten 
times  as  many  ciphers  would  go  for  naught.  The 
wiser  a  man  is,  the  more  distinguished  a  man  is, 
the  more  wealthy  a  man  is,  the  more  lovely  a  man 
is — provided  the  consecration  of  his  entire  heart  is 
rendered — the  more  helpful  and  useful  he  is  as  a 
Christian.  But  the  moment  this  consecration  dis- 
appears, all  these  advantages  are  turned  suddenly 
into  dangers,  for  they  work  on  the  adverse  side. 
Satan's  gifts  helped  him  to  be  a  worse  devil. 

We  recognize  the  same  principle  in  ordinary 
life.  Suppose  a  journeyman,  wilful  and  self-satis- 
fied, comes  to  one  of  us  and  asks  for  employment. 
We  go  to  a  master-mechanic  seeking  work  for  him 
in  his  poverty.  Each  one  in  turn  says  he  is  well 
acquainted  with  the  man,  but  will  have  nothing  to 
do  with  him.  Now  w^e  begin  to  expostulate:  "Is 
he  not  skilful?  is  he  not  industrious?  is  he  not 
honest?  is  he  not  a  kind  neighbor?  is  he  not  so- 
ber?" All  this  is  true,  comes  the  reply;  "but  the 
man  will  not  obey  orders."  The  prime  quality  of 
a  workman  is  gone;  that  lack  vitiates  all  the  rest; 
he  breeds  insubordination  wherever  he  goes.  His 
excellences  simply  render  him  dangerous. 

The  worst  is  that  God  himself  gives  all  these 


148  STUDIES    IN    MARK'S   GOSPEL. 

characteristics  on  which  moral  men  pride  them- 
selves, and  they  wickedly  turn  them  against  him. 
It  has  happened  that  one  man  has  interfered  some- 
times to  reconcile  another  man  with  his  disinher- 
ited son.  For  many  years  under  the  home  roof  he 
was  unfilial,  abusive,  alienated  from  all  who  loved 
him  there.  The  father  admits  that  he  has  rejected 
him  at  last.  The  neighbor  inquires,  *'Is  he  not 
educated  so  as  to  be  an  honor  to  you  ?  is  he  not  a 
most  agreeable  companion  ?  are  not  his  manners 
gentlemanly  ?  is  he  not  the  very  likeness  of  your- 
self in  form  and  mien?  how  can  you  keep  him 
away  from  your  heart?"  And  the  father  answers 
in  sad  sincerity  of  pity  and  love,  ''AH  that  you  say 
is  true;  and  it  was  myself  who  gave  him  these 
accomplishments:  I  educated  my  boys  all  alike,  but 
this  one  turned  against  me.  I  love  him,  but  he 
hates  me;  no  matter  how  courteous  he  is  to  stran- 
gers, he  villifies  me  here  before  the  others:  till  he 
changes  from  a  prodigal  to  a  son,  he  is  only  a  peril 
and  a  disturbance  in  the  house:  he  is  all  the  worse 
in  that  he  knows  so  well  how  to  be  better." 

We  actually  stand  ready  to  go  a  step  farther 
than  this  in  our  judgment.  We  demand  a  severer 
measure  of  retribution  upon  the  man  who  insists  on 
our  forbearance  with  him  in  crime  on  the  ground 
of  his  ordinary  virtues  in  behavior.  Here  is  a  sol- 
dier fighting  against  his  country;  the  community 
shuts  its  doors  on  him  while  he  is  under  arms;  it 
rejects  the  traitor  most  promptly  from  all  citizen- 
ship. "Why  is  this?"  you  ask.  "Is  he  not 
brave?  is  he  not  educated  in  the  highest  academy 


A  DEFECTIVE  CHARACTER.         149 

of  the  land?  is  he  not  persevering?  is  he  not  gen- 
tlemanly in  demeanor?  is  he  not  chivalrous,  the 
very  soul  of  honor  with  his  comrades?'  Certainly 
he  is  all  this.  But  he  fights  under  the  wrong  ban- 
ner. He  is  only  a  polished  rebel,  a  cultivated  vil- 
lain, a  talented  renegade.  All  the  worse  that  he 
has  so  many  good  qualities ;  they  ought  to  have 
held  him  steadfast  to  principle ;  they  only  now 
make  him  a  more  dancrerous  man.  One  thine  he 
lacks,  and  that  wanting,  the  rest  are  ruined,  and  he 
merits  greater  shame. 

3.  So  we  reach,  as  our  third  lesson,  this:  sucJl  a 
defective  c/iaracter  as  is  here  pictured  lias  to  be  reck- 
oned  according  to  its  defect^  to  the  exclusion  of  its  excel- 
lences. 

There  may  be  a  very  sJiozvy  morality  without  any 
true  religion.  Here  was  a  young  man  of  great 
prominence  and  promise.  He  said  he  had  kept  the 
law.     Let  us  see. 

''Master,  which  is  the  great  commandment  in 
the  law  ?  Jesus  said  unto  him.  Thou  shalt  love  the 
Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart  and  with  all  thy 
soul  and  with  all  thy  mind.  This  is  the  first  and 
great  commandment.  And  the  second  is  like  unto 
it.  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself  On 
these  two  commandments  hang  all  the  law  and  the 
prophets." 

We  see  on  the  instant  that,  at  his  own  showino-, 
he  had  obeyed  only  the  second  table.  He  had 
never  kept  the  first  commandment;  he  had  another 
God  than  Jehovah;  his  covetousness  was  idolatry. 
The  intensely  legal  spirit  he  exhibited  would  have 


150  STUDIES  IN  mark's  GOSPEL. 

been  pitiable  at  the  best;  but  what  shall  we  say  of 
it  when  we  find  it  was  hollow  from  the  beginning? 
He  was  not  moral:  '^  For  whosoever  shall  keep  the 
whole  law,  and  yet  ofiend  in  one  point,  he  is  guilty 
of  all.' ^ 

Grant  him  now  the  best  estimate  w^e  can  give. 
Admit  that  this  ruler  of  the  Jews  was  unimpeacha- 
ble before  his  fellow-men  as  to  any  of  the  dealings, 
amenities,  or  courtesies  of  every-day  life.  Correct 
in  deportment  and  gentle  in  demeanor,  let  us  accept 
his  account  of  himself:  over  his  entire  history  he 
can  look  and  find  no  blot  on  the  record  to  bring  a 
blush  to  his  cheek.  Frank  in  speech,  graceful  in 
behavior,  unbroken  in  integrity,  ingenuous  and 
open-hearted,  he  wins  every  companion  to  become 
a  cordial  brother  and  makes  every  acquaintance  a 
friend.  •  And  yet  with  all  this  morality  we  know  he 
was  not  a  Christian  man. 

There  may  be  a  very  spleitdid  manhood  without 
any  true  religion.  We  have  reason  to  think  this 
person  had  hardly  entered  his  prime.  Ardent  and 
light-hearted,  he  had  much  in  the  future  to  hope 
for,  much  in  the  present  to  enjoy.  He  stood  high 
in  society.  He  was  opulent;  his  notorious  wealth 
rendered  him  conspicuous.  The  community  looked 
up  to  him  as  a  very  respectable  man,  and  doubtless 
flattered  so  distinguished  a  citizen  with  every  mark 
of  consideration. 

But  in  some  way  he  had  privately  come  to  the 
consciousness  that  there  was  one  thing  he  lacked. 
He  heard  of  this  Galilean  rabbi.  He  went  forth  to 
inquire  of  him  the  path  to  eternal  life.     By  this 


A   DEFECTIVE   CHARACTER.  I5I 

very  act  he  acknowledged  himself  yet  an  uncon- 
verted man.  He  wa«  a  notable  person  in  men's 
eyes,  but  not  a  Christian. 

There  may  be  an  tmqtiestionable  orthodoxy  with- 
out any  true  religion.  This  young  ruler  lived  in 
an  exceedingly  confused  period.  That  generation 
was  historically  volatile  and  frivolous.  He  moved 
in  the  world  of  fashion;  he  might  easily  have  fallen 
into  the  prevalent  mood  of  unbelief.  All  the  refined 
and  cultivated  people  of  that  time  were  either  cold 
formalists  or  philosophic  materialists.  The  most 
popular  disbelief  was  represented  in  the  creed  of  the 
Sadducees;  these  were  brilliant,  witty,  and  specu- 
lative; but  they  rejected  the  doctrine  of  the  immor- 
tality of  the  human  soul.  They  denied  the  '*  eter- 
nal life"  which  this  man  came  to  inquire  about. 

But  he  was  not  as  yet  a  converted  man.  In  this 
day,  when  there  is  so  much  of  the  same  sort  of 
unbelief  as  well  as  qf  reckless  free- thinking,  one 
certainly  is  to  be  congratulated  who  holds  steadily 
to  the  ancient  faith  of  the  fathers  and  firmly  believes 
the  Bible.  Still,  with  this  story  before  his  eyes,  we 
may  ask  him  to  remember  that  more  is  needed  to 
become  a  Christian. 

There  may  be  deep  conviction  of  need  in  the  soul 
without  any  true  religion.  Never  forget  the  errand 
of  this  young  man  nor  the  manner  in  which  he  dis- 
charged it  (Mark  10: 17).  See  his  zeal;  he  came 
to  yesus.  See  his  haste;  he  came  running.  See 
his  courage ;  he  was  out  in  the  highway^  conspicuous 
to  all.  See  his  humility  ;  he  kneeled  2X  Jesus'  feet. 
See  his  anxiety ;  he  waited  for  no  circumlocution, 


153  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPEL. 

but  pushed  his  question  straight  towards  the  **  eter- 
nal life"  he  longed  for.  - 

Such  nobleness  as  this  rebukes  the  timid  trim- 
ming of  many  a  young  man  who  is  afraid  to  be 
deemed  an  inquirer.  When  it  is  the  tremendous 
interests  of  the  soul  which  are  at  stake,  it  is  as 
absurd  as  it  is  cowardly  to  be  ashamed.  But  do 
not  let  us  forget  that  although  this  ruler  was  deeply 
excited  about  his  eternal  welfare,  that  did  not  secure 
his  salvation:  he  was  not  yet  a  Christian  man;  one 
thing  he  lacked. 

There  may  be  even  a  measure  of  favor  zvith  God 
and  yet  no  personal  religion.  Strange  words  are 
these  that  we  meet  in  this  story:  "Then  Jesus,  be- 
holding him,  loved  him."  It  was  a  love  of  benev- 
olence, but  not  of  complacency.  Our  Lord  desired 
to  do  him  good.  His  human  heart  was  yearning 
over  him  as  once  it  yearned  over  Jerusalem  when 
he  wept  at  the  prospect  of  its,doom. 

God  is  on  the  side  of  virtue  as  opposed  to  vice 
always.  He  welcomes  even  imperfect  morality. 
He  is  pleased  with  gentle  manners  and  kindness  of 
heart  rather  than  with  coarseness  and  malicious 
spite.  Honesty  is  the  best  policy,  to  say  nothing  of 
principle.  The  general  providence  of  God  favors  it 
more  than  wickedness  or  deceit.  But  beyond  this 
external  regard  our  Lord  could  have  had  no  favor 
for  this  young  man.  He  saw  he  was  a  legalist,  a 
moralist,  and  self-deceived  at  that.  He  pitied  him 
quite  as  much  as  he  loved  him.  Old  Thomas  Bos- 
ton says,  commenting  on  this  passage,  "  Many  are 
the  devil's  lious,  filling  the  place  where  they  live 


A  DEFECTIVE  CHARACTER.  153 

with  the  noise  of  their  revels  and  riotings;  but  this 
young  man  was  one  of  the  devil's  lambs,  going  to 
hell  without  letting  the  world  hear  the  sound  of  his 
feet." 

Our  study  of  this  story  must,  for  the  present,  be 
arrested  here.  I  shall  have  gained  a  great  point  if 
I  have  shown  any  young  man  or  woman,  any  one 
of  maturer  age,  any  one  of  white  hairs  and  furrowed 
forehead,  that  it  is  possible  to  be  completely  de- 
ceived in  reference  to  one^s  own  state  before  God. 
To  some  it  may  seem  severe  that  we  need  to  say  to 
those  who  are  lovely  in  life  and  amiable  in  all  their 
associations  that  they  are  not  necessarily  nearer 
heaven  for  all  their  loveliness.  "One  thino-  thou 
lackest."  That  one  thing  is  an  entire  surrender  of 
self  to  Jesus  Christ. 


7* 


154  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospel. 


XV. 


STIFLED  CONVICTIONS. 

"And  he  was  sad  at  that  saying,  and  went  away  grieved; 

FOR   HE   HAD   GREAT   POSSESSIONS." — Mark  IO:22. 

This  story  of  the  young  ruler  ought  to  be  read 
as  it  now  appears  in  the  new  Revision  ;  for  there 
have  been  necessitated  in  the  phraseology  some  ren- 
derings which  the  great  scholars  say  are  quite  im- 
portant. 

"And  behold,  one  came  to  him  and  said,  Mas- 
ter, what  good  thing  shall  I  do  that  I  may  have 
eternal  life?  And  he  said  unto  him.  Why  askest 
thou  me  concerning  that  which  is  good  ?  One  there 
is  who  is  good:  but  if  thou  wouldest  enter  into  life, 
keep  the  commandments.  He  saith  unto  him. 
Which?  And  Jesus  said.  Thou  shalt  not  kill. 
Thou  shalt  not  commit  adultery.  Thou  shalt  not 
steal,  Thou  shalt  not  bear  false  witness.  Honor  thy 
father  and  thy  mother;  and.  Thou  shalt  love  thy 
neighbor  as  thyself.  The  young  man  saith  unto 
him.  All  these  things  have  I  observed:  what  lack  I 
yet?  Jesus  said  unto  him,  If  thou  wouldest  be  per- 
fect, go,  sell  that  thou  hast,  and  give  to  the  poor, 
and  thou  shalt  have  treasure  in  heaven:  and  come, 
follow  me.  But  when  the  young  man  heard  the 
saying  he  went  away  sorrowful;  for  he  was  one  that 
had  great  possessions. ' ' 

Notice  that  the  "good"  is  left  off  from  the  Mas- 


STIFI.ED   CONVICTIONS.  I^j 

ter's  name.  There  is  a  complete  alteration  of  the 
sense  in  the  next  clause:  "Why  callest  thou  me 
good?"  Then  also  the  whole  phrase  ''from  ray 
youth  up  "  is  suffered  to  disappear.  All  these  vari- 
ations will  be  found  to  give  aid  in  the  exposition  as 
we  proceed  in  the  study  of  the  particulars. 

This  man  evidently  started  out  with  an  anxious 
determination  and  an  eager  purpose  to  put  the 
claims  of  Jesus  Christ  under  investigation  for  the 
sake  of  deepening  his  own  spiritual  life,  Mark 
tells  us,  as  he  relates  the  incident,  that  "Jesus,  be- 
holding him,  loved  him;"  that  is,  so  amiable  was 
his  demeanor  that  our  Lord  was  moved  with  a  real 
regard  in  all  his  further  conversation.  And  we 
shall  not  miss  the  point  of  vSuch  a  story  if  we  take  it 
to  be  instructive  as  to  religious  convictions. 

I.  First,  we  must  look  at  the  picture  for  the 
illustration  which   it  furnishes  as  to  THE  way  in 

WHICH    men's    convictions    ARE    TESTED.       The 

test  here  proposed  was  meant  to  include  at  least 
these  three  elements: 

I.  The  young  ruler  was  told  to  sell  all  he  had. 
Our  notion  of  a  lot  in  life  like  his  naturally  sug- 
gests that  he  was  living  in  Oriental  luxury  and 
surrounded  by  all  the  privileges  of  a  patrician  in 
Jerusalem  of  that  day,  a  member  of  the  Sanhedrin 
of  the  highest  social  position.  It  is  possible  that 
he  had  beautified  for  himself  a  palace  with  every- 
thing in  it  that  opulence  could  buy;  that  he  had 
adorned  the  various  rooms  with  wealth  of  art  and 
curiously  wrought  the  floor  with  an  affluence  of 
mosaic  designs;  that  he  had  hung  the  windows  with 


156  STUDIES   IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

fringed  curtains  and  covered  the  couches  with  pur- 
ple. Outside  of  this  dwelling  he  may  have  owned 
his  parks  and  his  gardens,  chariots  and  slaves. 
Whatever  form  his  possessions  had  assumed,  the 
command  was  imperiously  laid  upon  him  demand- 
ing swift  obedience:  he  must  turn  them  instantly 
back  into  money  again.  The  mansion  must  be 
sold;  the  flowers,  the  groves,  the  paintings,  the 
jewels  must  pass  out  of  his  hands. 

2.  Then  he  was  to  give  all  his  wealth  to  the  poor. 
The  store  of  his  acquisitions  would  have  to  go,  not 
to  his  old  friends,  not  even  to  his  relatives  or  heirs, 
nor  to  his  peers  in  social  life,  but  to  common  peo- 
ple, to  those  upon  whom  he  doubtless  had  been 
educated  to  look  with  feelings  of  deepest  repug- 
nance and  supercilious  disdain.  All  his  precious 
treasure  must  go  to  please  and  comfort  new  owners 
whom  he  disliked. 

Our  Saviour  did  liere  interpose  one  measure  of 
relief;  he  gave  to  him  a  thought,  a  sentiment,  a 
hope,  a  promise.  He  assured  this  astonished  inqui- 
rer that  in  the  end  he  should  be  no  loser  by  the  gen- 
erosity which  impoverished  him  and  disinherited 
his  family;  he  should  have  for  his  reward  "  treasure 
in  heaven."  But  to  appreciate  this  in  those  days 
required  great  confidence  and  a  much  clearer  view 
of  the  gospel  covenant  than  this  legal-minded  man 
could  easily  be  supposed  to  possess  in  circumstan- 
ces like  those  which  surrounded  him.  Houses  and 
lands  get  a  good  name  everywhere;  they  are  called 
*'real  estate"  even  by  us,  and  it  is  difficult  to  let 
go  of  them  even  when  one  dies;  but  celestial  riches 


STIFLED   CONVICTIONS.  1 57 

are  vague  and  distant,  intangible  quite  to  the  faith 
of  some  men. 

3.  Then  this  ruler  was  told  that  he  must  join  his 
life  to  that  of  Jesus,  whatever  its  fortunes  might  be. 
''Come,  follow  me!"  These  words  in  the  Greek 
are  very  sharp  and  strong;  they  constitute  a  start- 
ling challenge,  a  sort  of  double  cry,  a  gesture  of 
peremptory  beckoning:  "  Hither,  behind  me!"  He 
must  become  a  pauper  by  his  own  deliberate  act, 
and  trust  this  wandering  rabbi  not  only  for  his  eter- 
nal salvation,  but  for  his  daily  bread.  That  in- 
volved an  entire  change  of  life  and  purpose. 

For  all  the  time  Jesus  Christ  kept  professing 
himself  to  be  an  absolutely  homeless  man.  ''  Mas- 
ter, where  dwellest  thou?"  was  the  question  ad- 
dressed to  him  once,  to  which  he  answered,  "The 
Son  of  Man  hath  not  where  to  lay  his  head."  This 
rich  and  comfortable  young  Jew  could  do  nothing 
but  leave  his  friends,  home,  and  ease,  turn  his  back 
for  ever  upon  all  his  previous  haunts  and  habits, 
associations  and  opinions,  commit  his  career  blindly 
to  the  leadership  of  a  teacher  disowned  and  cast 
out  by  his  own  relatives  as  well  as  by  all  the  chiefs 
of  the  nation. 

Now,  putting  all  three  of  these  requisitions 
together  and  making  the  case  our  own,  we  shall 
see  the  extreme  forcefulness  of  such  a  test  as  this. 
How  would  we,  who  think  ourselves  so  brave  in 
surrendering  a  portion  of  our  wealth  or  energy  or 
comfort  to  Christ,  like  to  have  our  consecration 
made  literal  and  exhaustive  at  once?  How  would 
we  bear  a  proposition  to  sell  our  houses  and  our 


158  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

stores,  our  stocks  and  our  jewels,  our  lands  and  our 
securities,  part  with  the  home  our  children  and  per- 
haps our  parents  were  born  in,  the  homestead  where 
one's  father  had  lived  and  one's  mother  had  prayed, 
then  become  a  wanderer  on  the  earth  for  Christ's 
sake,  taking  up  our  cross  willingly  just  to  follow 
him? 

II.  Such  a  question  leads  us  onward  a  step.  In 
the  second  place,  the  history  of  this  young  ruler 
gives  us  an  illustration  of  THE  way  in  which 
men's  religious  convictions  are  disclosed  as 
well  as  tested. 

It  needed  but  a  moment  of  consideration  to  show 
him  he  was  self-deceived.  He  saddened  at  the  say- 
ing of  Christ;  he  lowered  as  the  sky  does  before 
rain.  Doubtless  he  paused  an  instant,  pondered 
the  words,  made  definite  decision,  and  then,  with  a 
troubled  look  in  his  eyes,  began  to  withdraw  from 
the  circle  of  disciples,  utterly  unable  to  abide  the 
test. 

I.  But  observe,  //  had  at  all  events  enlightened  his 
mind.  When  he  came  to  Jesus  he  appeared  willing 
to  know  his  duty;  now  he  knew  it.  He  grew  per- 
fectly clear  as  to  what  was  meant  by  becoming  a 
follower  of  such  a  teacher,  and  he  perceived  his 
grand  mistake  in  supposing  he  had  had  any  real 
desire  to  do  so.  He  saw  the  hollowness  of  his  own 
moralities,  the  meagreness  of  his  attainments,  the 
insincerity  of  his  questions.  He  was  not  a  candi- 
date for  eternal  life.  The  law  he  had  boldly  de- 
clared he  had  kept  all  his  life  now  simply  slew  his 
claims.     All  these  things  he  had  not  kept  from  his 


STIFLED   CONVICTIONS.  I59 

youth  up,  for  the  obedience  that  was  involved 
reached  to  the  innermost  heart;  just  there  he  failed. 

You  may  possibly  ask  just  here,  Would  our  Lord 
have  suffered  the  ruler  to  go  on  and  complete  an 
actual  sale,  if  he  had  displayed  a  willingness  to  do 
so?  And  if  the  man  had  done  it.  Would  that  have 
secured  for  him  "eternal  life"?  Could  he  have 
bought  his  way  into  heaven  ? 

There  is  no  answer  for  such  a  question,  but  I 
am  sure  you  are  on  the  instant  reminded  of  the 
extraordinary  test  once  brought  to  Abraham  to  try 
his  faith.  The  call  came  for  him  to  sacrifice  his 
only  son  Isaac  as  a  burnt-offering.  He  raised  the 
knife  to  kill  him,  as  he  had  been  commanded.  But 
at  the  moment  the  acquiescence  showed  complete- 
ness a  voice  from  the  sky  forbade  the  act;  a  ram 
became  the  victim.  The  will  was  accepted  for  the 
deed.  When  one  surrenders  himself  as  a  disciple 
to  the  IrOrd  Jesus  Christ,  he  must  do  it  with  all  that 
it  involves.  The  gift  of  zeal,  strength,  life,  and 
fortune  must  be  absolute.  But  the  Almighty  Will 
may  not  call  for  the  expenditure  of  every  farthing 
on  the  instant;  indeed,  he  often  leaves  his  children 
in  happy  charge  of  the  bulk  of  their  wealth  for 
da3^s  and  years;  but  he  certainly  demands  the  spirit 
of  entire  surrender  at  once.  For  sometimes  what 
is  offered  him  he  takes  without  the  least  reserve. 
This  young  man  had  no  such  wish  or  purpose  in 
his  heart.  Without  any  apology,  without  even  an 
explanation,  he  abruptly  left  the  spot.  He  saw  in 
his  own  disposition  what  he  never  saw  before:  his 
desires  were  selfish  and  base. 


l6o  STUDIES  IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

2.  Another  result  of  this  test  on  that  ruler's  life 
was  this:  Jie  became  tJiorotigJily  satisfied  that  yesits 
desired  to  save  Ids  soul.  This  he  must  have  seen  in 
the  kindness  with  which  he  was  received,  and  cer- 
tainly in  the  regretful  affection  there  was  exhibited 
towards  him.  Not  a  sign  of  rebuke  for  his  insin- 
cerity is  administered;  he  is  constituted  his  own 
instructor,  and  so  he  becomes  his  own  judge.  Our 
Lord  even  tries  to  help  him  up  to  the  point  of  gra- 
cious surrender.  Really  Jesus  did  in  this  case  more 
than  he  did  for  Peter  or  Matthew,  for  James,  An- 
drew, or  John.  To  these  disciples  he  only  said  as 
he  called  them  into  his  service,  "Follow  me,"  and 
they  gave  up  all.  When  this  man  turned  away 
from  the  test  he  must  have  felt  in  his  innermost 
soul  that  he  was  now  disappointing  the  real  desire 
of  that  group  of  friends  in  his  behalf. 

It  is  likely  that  some  of  you  are  making  inquiry 
here  as  to  what  bearing  this  story  has  upon  young 
men  of  modern  times.  You  know  it  is  customary 
for  the  monastic  orders  to  find  one  of  their  stock 
arguments  here  in  defence  of  their  poverty  and 
seclusion.  Must  men  be  hopelessly  poor  in  order 
to  live  Christians?  Let  it  be  borne  in  mind  with 
all  luminousness  that  the  one  thing  which  our  Lord 
told  this  young  man  was  lacking  in  him  was  not 
poverty  but  piety.  Renunciation  of  wealth  must 
not  be  called  his  virtue  but  his  test.  It  was  not  his 
possessions  or  his  office  that  kept  him  out  of  eternal 
life;  it  was  his  love  of  them.  You  will  lose  the 
entire  force  of  this  narrative  if  you  discharge  its 
meaning  on  the  money.     Anything  else  would  have 


STIFLED   CONVICTIONS.  l6l 

answered  as  well,  if  a  disclosure  of  liis  real  mind 
had  been  wrought  by  it.  What  Christ  wanted  was 
the  young  man  himself,  and  not  the  mere  wealth 
he  owned.  ' 

3.  Yet  a  third  result  of  the  test  was  io  fling  tJie 
yotitJiful  rtdcr  on  his  ozvn  responsibility.  There  was 
for  him  no  evading  of  the  issue  after  this.  Look- 
ing down  into  his  own  soul,  there  he  saw  himself. 
He  discovered  that  avarice  or  greed  of  gold  sat 
upon  the  throne  of  his  whole  being.  Moral  cour- 
age, amiability,  prudence,  consistency,  wakened 
conscience,  all  pined  in  dungeon  confinement  under 
its  sway.  And  a  worse  fact  than  this  became  also 
suddenly  apparent:  he  accepted  intelligently  the 
pitiable  state  of  things  he  had  hitherto  uncon- 
sciously avoided  or  endured.  Then  he  had  de- 
ceived himself,  sinning  in  ignorance  and  in  secret; 
now  he  was  perfectly  informed,  and  yet  he  sinned 
with  a  deliberate  understandinof  of  the  wickedness. 
Once  he  had  been  unwarily  entangled  by  the  Deli- 
lah of  covetousness,  but  there  was  some  hope  that 
he  would  burst  the  green  withes  with  which  she 
had  caused  his  limbs  to  be  cunningly  bound.  Now 
he  voluntarily  laid  his  head  in  her  lap  where  she 
might  cut  off  the  sacred  lock  of  his  strength,  and  so 
cripple  for  ever  his  manhood,  put  out  his  eyes,  and 
consign  him  to  dreadful  shame. 

Thus  the  full  responsibility  of  his  action  is  seen 
to  be  his  own  in  all  its  reach.  Base  as  he  knew  his 
real  master  to  be,  this  man  was  content  to  bend  in 
obeisance  to  him.  He  had  kneeled  to  Christ;  he 
now  of^ovels  in  the  dust  to  Greed.     He  ofTered  to  be 


l6z  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

a  servant  to  God;  liere  lie  ends  by  becoming  a  slave 
to  Mammon.  There  is  reason  to  conclude,  more- 
over, that  he  actually  wished  or  hoped  that  his  folly 
could  ever  after  be  concealed;  that  he  seriously 
repented  that  moment  of  weak  solicitude  in  which 
he  had  gone  forth  so  publicly  to  consult  Christ  upon 
the  open  roadway.  He  came  courageous ;  he  de- 
parted a  coward.  Still  with  all  this,  recollect,  no 
fresh  quality  had  been  instilled  into  his  character; 
only  an  old  one  was  disclosed  that  had  been  there 
before. 

4.  A  final  result  remains  to  be  noticed:  the  con- 
victions he  came  with  we7'e  confirmed.  One  might 
imagine,  perhaps,  that  this  young  man,  having  had 
his  spiritual  eyes  opened  to  see  the  mistake  he  had 
committed  in  seeking  eternal  life  through  this  great 
Teacher,  when  he  was  so  miserably  heartless  in  his 
request  for  it,  would  now  go  away  positively  glad 
to  have  escaped  the- trap  which  he  conjectured  had 
been  suddenly  sprung  upon  him  to  render  him  poor 
in  an  instant,  and  would  volubly  congratulate  him- 
self on  not  having  yielded  to  so  radical  a  demand. 

But  such  is  not  the  usual  action  of  conscience  in 
these  cases  of  religious  anxiety.  Convictions  of  sin 
are  always  deepened  by  stifling  their  poignancy. 
A  duty  rejected  is  a  duty  doubled;  for  another  obli- 
gation comes  now,  that  of  repentance  over  the 
denial  and  the  delay.  A  shallow  sense  of  resent- 
ment, when  one  has  been  counselled  against  inner 
prejudices  and  traditions,  may  quiet  some  of  the 
first  longings;  but  a  sense  of  the  old  pain  follows 
closely  on;  and  then  self-condemnations  and  bitter- 


STIFLED   CONVICTIONS.  1 63 

ncsses  of  regret  become  established  in  liis  soul.  It 
might  generally  be  assumed  as  settled  that  it  is 
only  a  question  of  time  with  such  an  inquirer  how 
soon  he  will  see  his  just  condemnation  face  to  face. 
*'Some  men's  sins  are  open  beforehand,  going  be- 
fore to  judgment;  and  some  men  they  follow  after." 
Useless  experience  of  pain  must  be  gone  over. 

III.  We  close  our  study  of  the  story  just  here; 
but  there  is  an  important  series  of  reflec- 
tions SUGGESTED  by  such  a  theme.  Some  of  so 
appropriate  a  group  for  this  age  of  ours  ought  to  be 
mentioned  surely. 

I.  We  see,  for  one  thing,  Jiow  solemn  and  yet  how 
valuable  a  benediction  it  is  to  any  man  to  be  thrown 
tinder  conviction  of  sijt.  Whenever  the  Spirit  of  the 
living  God  is  really  striving  with  the  mind  and 
conscience  of  a  human  being  bound  to  the  judg- 
ment-seat of  Christ,  illumining  his  heart  and  con- 
straining him  to  inquire  what  he  must  do  in  order 
to  inherit  eternal  life,  he  has  his  open  chance  for 
salvation  by  the  atonement  which  that  God  has 
proclaimed  he  will  accept.  It  changes  from  the 
mere  fitful  emotion  of  fear  or  sensibility  into  a  pro- 
found business  transaction,  in  the  midst  of  which 
one  settles  for  ever  what  a  soul  like  his  is  worth, 
and  what  he  proposes  to  give  in  exchange  for  a 
future  fitting  its  immortality.  No  matter  then  if 
his  whole  existence  is  arrested,  his  spirit  tossed 
tumultuously  with  anguish  until  slumber  forsakes 
his  bed,  and  terrible  wrath  glooms  out  upon  him 
like  thunder-clouds  from  an  offended  heaven;  bet- 
ter is  it  for  him  to  be  awakened  by  a  gracious  con- 


164  studip:s  in  mark's  gospei.. 

sternatlon  that  almost  tears  him  to  pieces  than  for 
him  to  sleep  on  in  the  frozen  insensibility  of  a  false 
security  of  peace. 

2.  Then  again  we  discover  here  to  what  an  ama^ 
zmg  extent  siLch  an  experience  of  self-deception  can  go. 
How  little  of  his  own  heart  this  young  ruler  knew! 
He  supposed  all  the  time  that  he  was  very  good, 
very  pious,  very  satisfactory  every  way,  even  when 
he  was  so  surprisingly  dissatisfied.  His  pitiable 
correctness  of  a  mere  external  demeanor  he  had 
been  bold  enough  to  offer  to  God,  as  if  it  were  worth 
counting  !  He  was  as  startled  now  to  find  out  its 
worthlessness  as  was  Nicodemus,  a  fellow-member 
of  the  same  Sanhedrin,  to  learn,  "Except  a  man 
be  born  acrain  he  cannot  see  the  kin2:doni  of  God.'* 
There  must  be  a  radical  alteration  in  one's  whole 
being  before  he  can  be  sure  of  eternal  life  on  any 
terms.  That  change  he  cannot  work  for  himself; 
he  must  accept  it  and  seek  for  it  as  a  gift  entirely 
of  God's  grace.  It  is  astonishing  to  think  that 
some  very  amiable  persons  now  imagine  that  if 
they  offer  generous  alms  to  poor  people,  and  keep 
courteous  to  the  rich  and  just  to  everybody,  they 
are  all  right  in  the  sight  of  their  ]\Iaker.  They 
openly  live,  as  this  young  ruler  openly  said,  in  the 
full  profession  of  a  stupendous  self-righteousness,  as 
silly  as  it  is  finally  fatal. 

3.  So  we  have  a  third  lesson.  What  a  mercy  it 
is  that  the  Spirit  of  God  is  wise  enough  to  find  for  each 
man  his  true  test !  That  has  power  to  show  him 
just  what  he  is.  You  will  mistake  this  story  if  you 
conclude   that  wealth   is  always  proposed  as   the 


STIFLED   CONVICTIONS.  165 

touclistonc.  Not  by  any  manner  of  means.  Here 
is,  for  example,  one  person  in  society  whose  ingra- 
tiating manners  or  bland  converse  render  him  the 
charm  of  every  assembly  he  enters;  the  voice  comes 
to  him  with  no  reference  to  luxurious  surroundings 
of  silver  or  gold;  it  says,  "  Love  not  the  w^orld,  but 
relinquish  its  gayeties,  forsake  its  amusements, 
forego  its  companionships."  Usually  the  tests  are 
so  commonplace  that  they  elude  observation  unless 
one  is  on  the  alert  for  their  disclosure.  A  man  in 
ordinary  business  life  is  bidden  to  refuse  a  bargain 
which  will  be  profitable,  to  cease  from  the  practice 
of  using  false  trade-marks,  to  give  up  the  customs 
of  a  lucrative  but  iniquitous  traffic.  It  is  not  the 
obedience  to  these  demands  of  principle  that  makes 
the  man  a  Christian;  it  is  the  application  of  them 
that  brings  out  to  light  the  fact  that  such  a  man  is 
not,  and  never  has  been,  a  Christian,  and  that  it  is 
certainly  time  he  should  admit  it  and  set  about 
becoming  a  child  of  God. 

4.  lycarn  here  also  that  every  mere  moralist  has 
some  weak  side  upon  which  he  may  he  approached  by  the 
adversary.  When  that  is  reached  the  man  suc- 
cumbs. Generally  a  person's  weakest  point  is  that 
one  on  which  he  particularly  j)rides  himself  he  is 
the  most  secure:  "Wherefore,  let  him  that  think- 
eth  he  standeth  take  heed  lest  he  fall." 

5.  Reflect,  once  more,  upon  the  impressiveness  of 
that  moment  in  wJiicJi  a  convicted  man  first  sees  his 
ozun  heart.  Look  upon  that  agitated  ruler  as  he 
stands  pondering  the  question  which  the  Lord  has 
given  him!     ]\Ien  are  often  caught  so  in  these  mod- 


i66  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospei.. 

ern  times.  The  whole  future  of  their  souls  turns 
upon  a  decision  made  in  ten  seconds  by  the  clock. 
The  providence  of  God  is  always  working  up  to- 
wards such  crises.  It  is  possible  some  souls  have 
the  decision  upon  their  hands  this  very  hour. 

6.  Finally,  we  learn  that  the  supreme  question  in 
all  these  cases  is^  Will  the  man  go  on  or  go  back  ? 
That  young  ruler  went  back;  so  he  lost  his  chance. 
How  will  it  be  with  ourselves  here  to-nifjlit? 

Oh,  it  is  always  so  easy  to  find  a  way  to  do  the 
right  thing,  if  only  one  has  the  will !  God  helps. 
Decisions  on  which  life  and  eternity  turn  have 
been  made  on  the  simplest  form  of  speech.  Dean 
Stanley  tells  the  tale  of  a  woman  who  found  her 
way  from  the  distant  wilds  of  Asia  to  her  husband's 
home  in  England  by  constantly  repeating  the  only 
two  words  she  knew  in  our  language,  "Gilbert" 
and  "London."  He  uses  this  pathetic  incident  to 
illustrate  how  much  a  seeker  after  God  might  do 
for  himself  if  he  would  only  put  into  practice  again 
and  again  the  very  simplest  and  shortest  notions  he 
has  of  Christ  and  Christ's  goodness.  Let  every  one 
here  try  to  frame  a  prayer  in  which  he  can  end  his 
indecision  with  one  word  of  irrevocable  surrender. 
Say,  "I  am  a  sinner  and  I  have  sinned;  take  me 
as  I  am,  penitent  and  believing;  take  me  with  my 
heart  and  soul  and  life,  and  pardon  me,  and  save 
me  for  ever!     Amen." 


tii:e:  sigiiti^ess  sinnkr,  bartimeus.      167 


XVI. 
THE  SIGHTI.ESS  SINNER,  BARTIMEUS. 

"Blind  Bartimeus,  the  son  of   Timeus,  sat  ey  the  highway 

SIDE  BEGGING." — Mark  10:46. 

That  the  cure  of  Bartimeus  was  a  veritable 
miracle  no  one  can  reasonably  doubt.  The  man 
was  a  well-known  beggar.  His  father's  name  as 
well  as  his  own  is  given.  He  had  doubtless  been 
blind  for  a  long  time,  and  many  a  person  in  the 
crowd  had  seen  him  there  by  the  gate  day  after  day. 
The  vast  multitude  could  have  borne  immediate 
and  uproarious  testimony  to  the  deception  if  either 
the  disability  or  the  relief  of  it  had  been  feigned. 

In  our  study  of  the  story  we  might  as  well  take 
into  consideration  the  facts  first,  and  then  learn  the 
lesson  afterwards.  That  is  to  say,  let  us  in  the  out- 
set  attend  to  the  miracle  as  a  wonder^  and  so  we 
shall  appreciate  it  better  ^jt  a  parable. 

I.  We  look  closely  at  Bartimeus  on  this  occa- 
sion. It  is  true  that  Jesus  is  the  centre  of  the  pic- 
ture, as  he  always  is.  But  this  miracle  is  peculiar 
in  that  the  details  of  it  are  more  than  usually  bril- 
liant as  an  illustration  of  simple  human  nature  in 
the  one  who  receives  the  advantage  of  it. 

I.  The  state  oi  \\\\?,  poor  creature  is  given  at  a 
stroke  of  the  pen.  It  would  be  difficult  to  crowd 
more  biography  into  one  verse  than  we  find  in 
Mark's  narrative:  "And  they  came  to  Jericho:  and 


1 68  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospel. 

as  he  went  out  of  Jericho  with  his  disciples  and  a 
great  number  of  people,  blind  Bartimeus,  the  son  of 
Timeus,  sat  by  the  highway  side  begging." 

He  was  sightless.  He  had  come  to  be  called  by 
that  name:  "  blind  Bartimeus."  He  was  2. pauper, 
*' Begging"  was  his  business.  He  was  a  profes- 
sional mendicant.  We  do  not  look  upon  him  as 
one  who  had  got  behindhand  a  little,  and  so  was 
out  on  the  streets  for  a  day  or  two,  until  he  could 
get  into  employment.  He  *^sat  by  the  highway 
side  begging." 

He  was  helpless.  There  is  no  evidence  that  he 
had  any  friends  who  cared  for  him;  they  would 
have  made  themselves  conspicuous  after  his  cure, 
if  there  had  been  many  of  them.  It  is  likely  this 
man  went  to  his  regular  stand  every  morning;  be- 
side him  lay  his  staff,  and  in  his  lap  lay  the  pouch 
into  which  was  thrown  the  pittance  he  managed  to 
live  upon. 

He  was  hopeless.  It  was  impossible  for  him  to 
do  anything;  he  could  not  see  to  learn  a  trade. 

He  was  unpoptdar.  Anybody  had  a  right  to 
snub  him  the  moment  he  said  a  word:  "And  they 
which  went  before  rebuked  him,  that  he  should 
hold  his  peace." 

He  was  uneasv  and  fiercely  on  the  alert  to  better 
his  condition.  What  arrested  his  attention  was  the 
unusual  crowd:  "And  hearing  the  multitude  pass 
by,  he  asked  what  it  meant."  He  did  not  hear 
Jesus,  but  he  heard  those  who  followed  Jesus.  His 
whole  soul  was  alive  and  anxious  for  some  relief. 

2.   Now  notice  his  action.     Here  we  need    the 


bartime:us.      169 

verse  which  has  just  been  quoted  from  Liike*s  gos- 
pel for  a  link  between  the  two  apparently  disjointed 
verses  of  Mark's:  "And  when  he  heard  that  it  was 
Jesus  of  Nazareth,  he  began  to  cry  out  and  say, 
Jesus,  thou  son  of  David,  have  mercy  on 'me." 
How  this  man  *' heard  that  it  was  Jesus  of  Naza- 
reth "  is  shown  there;  the  multitude  told  him  so. 

Bartimeus  sought  informatio7i.  He  was  not  too 
proud  to  acknowledge  he  did  not  know.  Two 
things  there  were  which  it  would  be  impossible  for 
him  ever  to  find  out  by  himself:  he  would  have  to 
be  instructed  concerning  the  wonderful  and  beauti- 
ful and  valuable  gift  of  seeing  by  those  who  under- 
stood it;  and  he  would  have  to  be  informed  that 
this  Nazarene  rabbi  could  remove  the  disability, 
and  that  just  at  the  moment  he  was  "  nigh"  Jeri- 
cho. Does  any  one  suppose  this  poor  beggar  got 
offended  because  some  one  insisted  that  he  was 
sightless?  If  a  neighbor  had  showed  himself  a  lit- 
tle friendly  and  proposed  to  lead  him  up  for  a  cure, 
would  Bartimeus  simply  spite  him  for  being  imper- 
tinent about  other  people's  concerns? 

Then,  next,  this  blind  man  began  \.o  ask  for  help : 
"And  many  charged  him  that  he  should  hold  his 
peace;  but  he  cried  the  more  a  great  deal.  Thou  son 
of  David,  have  mercy  on  me." 

His  request  was  singularly  comprehensive  and 
intelligent.  Whether  he  fully  understood  its  reach 
or  not,  the  language  he  employed  took  in  the  hu- 
man nature  and  the  divine  nature  of  our  Lord  at 
once.     "Jesus"  was  a  man;  the  "Son  of  David" 

was  God's  Messiah, 

8 


170  STUDIES  IN   mark's  GOSPEL. 

His  cry  was  personal  and  direct:  **Have  mercy 
on  me."  He  wastes  no  time  in  graceful  opening 
or  becoming  close;  what  he  wanted  he  tells. 

His  prayer  was  courageous  and  importunate. 
What  these  people  could  in  such  a  case  mean  passes 
comprehension;  one  would  think  everybody  might 
rejoice  at  a  chance  of  getting  that  old  blind  beggar 
away  from  begging  at*  the  gates  of  Jericho.  But 
they  only  made  the  poor  fellow  think  he  had  done 
the  right  thing  after  all. 

Bartimeus  then  ^''rose  and  came  to  yesiisy  It 
would  have  been  the  height  of  foUy^  for  him  to  say 
to  himself,  "If  it  is  the  will  of  this  rabbi  to  open 
my  eyes,  he  can  do  it  from  a  distance  just  as  well  as 
if  I  were  there."  For  the  wonderful  fact  was  that 
Jesus  had  checked  his  steps  and  was  now  waiting 
for  him,  and  had  even  commanded  him  to  be  called: 
"And  Jesus  stood  still  and  commanded  him  to  be 
called.  And  they  call  the  blind  man,  saying  unto 
him.  Be  of  good  comfort,  rise;  he  calleth  thee." 

Then  also  this  blind  man  put  away  the  hindrance 
which  it  was  likely  would  delay  him  in  going  for 
his  cure:  "And  he,  casting  away  his  garment,  rose 
and  came  to  Jesus."  This  was  his  loose  outside 
robe,  such  as  is  customarily  worn  even  by  the  low- 
est class  of  people  in  that  country,  their  protection 
from  the  sunshine  in  the  daytime  and  their  cover- 
ing from  the  chill  dews  of  the  night — a  simple  gar- 
ment, no  doubt,  but  almost  indispensable  to  him. 
Still,  if  it  interfered  with  the  restoration  of  his  eye- 
sight, it  could  well  be  spared. 

3.  Notice,   in  the  next  place,   Bartimeus'  full 


Till-    SIGHTLESS    SINNF.R,    BARTIMEUS.         171 

surrender:  "And  Jesus  answered  and  said  unto  him, 
What  wilt  thou  that  I  should  do  unto  thee  ?  The 
blind  man  said  unto  him,  Lord,  that  I  might  receive 
my  sight. '^ 

Two  things  are  to  be  noted  in  this  remarkable 
speech.  We  shall  not  understand  either  of  them 
unless  we  keep  in  mind  the  most  singular  question 
which  Jesus  puts  to  the  man  the  moment  he  comes 
within  hearing.  It  was  not  because  he  did  not 
know  this  beggar's  condition  that  our  Lord  asked 
him  so  abruptly  what  he  would  have  him  to  do.  It 
must  have  been  because  he  desired  to  fasten  his  faith 
upon  one  chief  object  of  supreme  desire.  There 
was  no  end  to  the  wants  of  Bartimeus:  he  wanted 
food,  friends,  clothing,  home,  everything  that  any- 
body demands  in  order  to  make  a  mendicant  a  man. 
But,  more  than  all  besides,  he  wanted  eyesight; 
and  he  found  that  out  when  he  went  in  upon  his 
own  soul  to  make  inquiry.     This  explains  his  reply. 

He  speaks  with  a  declaration:  "Lord.''  This 
address,  most  inadequately  rendered  here  in  Mark's 
gospel,  means  far  more  than  mere  respect.  The 
term  in  Luke  is  different  from  this;  here  it  is  actu- 
ally the  same  as  that  Mary  Magdalene  uses  when 
she  discovers  that  one  she  thought  was  the  gardener 
is  Jesus:  "Rabboni!"  There  is  concentrated  in 
just  a  single  word  a  whole  burst  of  generous  and 
affectionate  feeling:  "My  Master!"  Faith,  rever- 
ence, love  unspeakable,  adoring  wonder  were  in 
that  word. 

He  speaks  with  an  ellipsis.  As  before  we  found 
more  in  his  utterance  than  we  expected,  so  now  we 


173  STUDIES    IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

find  less.  Bartimens  does  not  reply  directly  to  our 
Lord's  question.  He  cannot:  how  could  he  know 
what  a  miracle-w^orker  should  do?  All  he  knew 
was  what  he  himself  w^anted  to  be  done.  So  his 
answer  would  read  in  full,  ' '  I  do  not  understand 
what  thou  wilt  do,  nor  even  what  I  would  have 
thee  to  do — oh,  do  anything,  anything — that  I 
might  receive  my  sight!" 

4.  Once  more,  notice  Bartimens'  aire:  ''And 
Jesus  said  unto  him,  Go  thy  way;  thy  faith  hath 
made  thee  whole.  And  immediately  he  received 
his  sight  and  followed  Jesus  in  the  way."  It  was 
instantaneous:  "immediately."  It  was  perfect: 
"whole."  It  was  sovereign:  "Go  thy  way."  It 
was  complete,  including  salvation :  ' '  Thy  faith 
hath  saved  thee." 

5.  Lastly,  notice  the  man's  experience,  Luke 
adds  a  few  particulars  more:  "And  immediately  he 
received  his  sight  and  followed  him,  glorifying 
God;  and  all  the  people,  when  they  saw  it,  gave 
praise  unto  God."  He  was  full  of  joy;  a  new 
world  had  been  suddenly  opened  upon  him.  He 
was  obedient;  he  followed  Jesus  as  a  disciple.  He 
was  grateful;  he  glorified  God.  He  was  zealous. 
In  Matthew's  gospel  we  are  told  that  there  w^ere 
"two"  men  sitting  there  that  day  in  their  blind- 
ness and  begging.  Then  there  was,  as  there  always 
is,  "another  man"  close  at  hand  for  Bartimeus  to 
work  upon  immediately.  We  may  be  sure  he  left 
not  so  much  as  one  blind  man  in  all  Jericho  with- 
out the  knowledge  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  "Oh, 
that   all    the  blind  but  knew  him   and  would  be 


THE  SIGHTLESS  SINNER,   BARTIMEUS.        1/3 

advised  by  me!  Surely  would  they  hasten  to  him; 
he  would  cause  them  all  to  see!'^  That  comrade  of 
his  was  cured  and  converted  the  same  hour.^  We 
cannot  help  thinking  Bartimeus  had  something  to 
do  with  it.  And  what  a  work  those  two  persons 
could  do  now  in  the  old  sad  city  ! 

II.  So  much  then  concerning  this  miracle  as  a 
wonder;  let  us  now  study  its  lessons  as  a  parable. 
It  very  beautifully  pictures  the  steps  of  a  sinner 
coming  for  spiritual  relief  to  Jesus— the  state,  the 
action,  the  surrender,  the  cure,  the  experience.  In- 
deed, this  was  a  real  part  of  the  story  that  day. 

I.  Sightlessness  is  the  symbol  of  shi.  Not  dark- 
ness now,  for  Christ  has  come.  "Then  spake 
Jesus  again  unto  them,  saying,  I  am  the  light  of 
the  world:  he  that  followeth  me  shall  not  walk  in 
darkness,  but  shall  have  the  light  of  life."  The 
trouble  is  in  the  heart.  The  world  is  not  dark- 
ened, but  the  race  of  sinners  has  been  blinded. 
The  calamity  is  not  in  the  sky,  but  in  the  eyes  of 
men's  souls.  Who  did  this?  "If  our  gospel  be 
hid,  it  is  hid  to  them  that  are  lost;  in  whom  the 
god  of  this  world  hath  blinded  the  minds  of  them 
which  believe  not,  lest  the  light  of  the  glorious 
gospel  of  Christ,  who  is  the  image  of  God,  should 
shine  unto  them." 

2.  Sin  destroys  the  whole  nature.  We  do  not  say 
Bartimeus  was  injured  in  any  of  his  senses  except 
his  eyes.  But  his  blindness  made  him  a  beggar. 
His  touch,  hearing,  and  taste  may  have  been  per- 
fect; indeed,  they  may  have  been  rendered  sensi- 
tive,  sharp,   and  alert  more  than  usual.     But  he 


174  STUDIES  IN    mark's  GOSPHL. 

walked  as  a  blind  man,  he  reasoned  as  a  blind 
man,  he  thought  as  a  blind  man,  and  he  went  to 
his  regular  stand  as  a  blind  man,  and  then  begged. 

3.  Awake7ting  of  siimers  is  often  due  to  Christian 
fidelity.  When  this  poor  blind  world  hears  the  rush 
of  faithful  footsteps  following  on  after  the  Master  it 
will  be  sure  to  ask  anxiously  what  it  means. 

4.  In  the  salvation  of  his  soul  the  sinfier  has  a  work 
to  do.  It  is  of  no  use  to  fall  back  on  one's  blind- 
ness; the  first  step  is  to  confess  blindness  and  go  to 
Christ  for  help. 

5.  Prayer  is  indispensable  i7i  every  case.  No  one 
can  be  saved  who  will  not  ask  for  salvation.  The 
petition  might  well  become  a  *^cry."  And  what- 
ever hinders,  let  the  man  continue  to  pray,  and 
pray  ''the  more  a  great  deal.'^ 

6.  All  Jiindrances  mnst  be  put  away  if  one  is  in 
earnest  to  be  saved.  Many  a  man  has  seemed  to 
start  well,  but  has  been  tangled  in  the  running  by 
his  garments  of  respectability,  fame,  fortune,  social 
standing,  literary  eminence,  or  pleasant  companion- 
ship. One  may  obtain  the  ''whole  world '^  .and 
lose  "his  own  soul.'* 

7.  yesiis  is  always  ready  to  save  any  one  who 
cries  to  him.  Oh,  most  impressive  moment  is  that 
when  the  Lord  of  glory  pauses  in  the  way  and  com- 
mands a  soul  "  to  be  called  " ! 

8.  Unqiialified  acceptance  of  Christ  in  all  his  offices 
is  the  essential  condition  of  acceptance  by  him. 
The  sinner  must  say,  "Lord,"  "Jesus  of  Naza- 
reth," "Son  of  David,"  and  "Rabboni." 

9.  Experience  of  salvation  is  the  instrument  to  use 


THE  SIGHTLESS   SINNER,   BARTIMEUS.        1 75 

in  our  efforts  to  save  others.  ''Once  I  was  blind, 
now  I  see;''  the  best  argument  in  the  world  for 
blind  men  is  in  that  word.  And  the  best  word  for 
sinners  is,  "  Christ  hath  saved  me." 

*'  Blind  Bartimeus  at  the  gates 
Of  Jericho  in  darkness  waits; 
He  hears  the  crowd— he  hears  a  breath 
Say,  "It  is  Christ  of  Nazareth  !" 
And  calls  in  tones  of  agony, 
'Ijyaou,  ilE-nabv  fie  !^ 

"  The  thronging  multitudes  increase  ; 
Blind  Bartimeus,  hold  thy  peace ! 
But  still  above  the  noisy  crowd 
The  beggar's  cry  is  shrill  and  loud, 
Until  they  say,  "  He  calleth  thee!" 
Oapaeij  iyeipai,  (puvei  aeif 

"  Then  saith  the  Christ,  as  silent  stands 
The  crowd,  'What  wilt  thou  at  my  hands?* 
And  he  replies,  *  Oh,  give  me  light ! 
Rabbi,  restore  the  blind  man's  sight !' 
And  Jesus  answers, '  TTzaye ; 
*H  ■nioTijQ  aov  oeauKC  oe  l^ 

"  Ye  that  have  eyes,  yet  cannot  see, 
In  darkness  and  in  misery, 
Recall  those  mighty  Voices  Three, 
'Itjaov,  ITiCTjaov  fie ! 
Oupaeu,  tyeipat,  virayt ! 
'H  iriaTu:  aov  aeauKE  ae  !"* 

*  "Jesus,  have  mercy  on  me!" 

+  "  Be  comforted  ;  rise,  He  calletli  thee  !" 

X  "  Go  thy  way ;  thy  faith  hath  made  thee  whole." 


176  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEI.. 


XVIL 
CHRIST  ENTERING  JERUSAI^EM. 

"Blessed  be  the  kingdom  of  our  father  David,  that  Com- 
eth IN  the  name  of  the  Lord:  Hosanna  in  the  highest." — • 
Ma,rk  ii:io. 

We  have  now  in  the  progress  of  our  study 
reached  the  most  picturesque  event  of  our  Saviour's 
life.  Indeed,  there  is  no  other  instance  in  which  he 
deliberately  prepared  a  spectacle  to  touch  the  imag- 
ination or  to  attract  popular  applause.  Hitherto  he 
had  come  into  the  sacred  city  and  gone  out  of  it 
again  at  his  will,  without  any  seeking  of  conspicu- 
ousness  or  any  recognition  of  his  Messiahship  by 
the  throngs  of  the  people. 

On  the  contrary,  it  would  appear  to  have  been 
his  endeavor  to  force  even  his  disciples  to  keep 
secret  the  few  grand  displays  he  had  arranged  for 
their  confirmation.  Over  and  over  again  he  bade 
the  invalids  he  healed  to  tell  no  man  of  his  miracu- 
lous work.  The  three  favored  followers  who  wit- 
nessed the  transfiguration  were  commanded  to  keep 
the  story  concealed. 

But  now  Jesus  shows  a  sudden  reversal  of  his 
policy.  He  makes  a  direct  and  public  defiance  of 
the  chief  priests  in  the  presence  of  their  bigoted 
adherents;  he  advances  his  claims  to  be  the  succes- 
sor of  David  on  the  throne  of  Israel,  the  long-pre- 
dicted Messiah  for  the  nation.     After  this  there  is 


CHRIST    ENTKRING  JERUSALEM.  1 77 

no   retreat,  no  rescue,  no   hesitation.     At   last   his 
"hour"  has  come. 

The  Scriptural  record  of  this  triumphal  entry 
into  Jerusalem  is  not  without  difficulties  in  details, 
but  it  is  an  incidental  proof  of  the  ease  of  reconcil- 
iation to  an  honest  mind. 

It  is  noticeable  that  all  four  of  the  evangelists 
give  accounts  of  the  incident,  but  that  John  omits 
many  of  the  details,  and  dwells  more  particularly 
upon  its  being  a  confirmation  of  prophecy,  and  as 
caused  especially  by  the  recent  raising  of  Lazarus 
from  the  grave.  He  mentions,  also,  the  despair  of 
the  Pharisees,  who  exclaimed,  *'  Behold,  how  ye 
prevail  nothing;  lo,  the  world  is  gone  out  after 
him."  Matthew  quotes  with  him  the  passage  from 
Zechariah.  Luke  states  that  the  owners  of  the  colt 
asked  the  question  anticipated  by  the  Saviour.  He 
affirms,  too,  that  the  multitudes  were  moved  to  their 
enthusiasm  by  the  mighty  works  they  had  seen; 
and  he  records  the  remonstrance  of  the  Pharisees, 
*' Master,  rebuke  thy  disciples,"  and  the  Master's 
reply,  "  I  tell  you,  if  these  should  hold  their  peace, 
the  stones  would  immediately  cry  out." 

We  can  confine  ourselves  just  now  to  the  enu- 
meration of  some  lessons  about  which  we  shall  be 
all  acrreed. 

L  This  story  exhibits  Christ's  foreknowledge  of 
all  ordinary  events.  He  tells  his  disciples  as  they  set 
forth  to  do  this  errand  just  what  will  happen. 
*'And  when  they  came  nigh  to  Jerusalem,  unto 
Bethphage,  and  Bethany,  at  the  mount  of  Olives,  he 
seudeth  forth  two  of  his  disciples,  and  saith  unto 

8* 


178  STUDIES    IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

tlicm,  Go  your  way  Into  the  village  over  against 
you:  and  as  soon  as  ye  be  entered  into  it,  ye  shall 
find  a  colt  tied,  whereon  never  man  sat ;  loose 
him  and  bring  him.  And  if  any  man  say  unto 
you.  Why  do  ye  this?  say  ye  that  the  Lord  hath 
need  of  him,  and  straightway  he  will  send  him 
hither. '» 

From  the  plain  of  Jericho,  distant  nearly  eight- 
een miles  from  the  Holy  City,  a  long  ascent  brings 
the  traveller  to  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Mount  of 
Olives,  or  Olivet,  as  it  is  also  called;  that  is,  olive 
ground.  The  most  eastern  village,  probably  here 
named  first  in  accordance  with  the  time  of  ar- 
rival, is  Bethphage,  *' house  or  place  of  unripe 
figs,"  near  to  which  was  Bethany,  or  the  **  house 
of  dates,"  the  home  of  Mary,  Martha,  and  Lazarus. 
Bethany  lay  on  the  eastern  slope  of  Mt.  Olivet, 
distant  about  a  mile  and  three-quarters  from  the 
city.  The  pilgrims  had  thus  travelled  about  six- 
teen miles. 

It  is  the  w^onderful  particularity  with  which  our 
Lord  relates  the  incidents  of  this  errand  that  at- 
tracts attention  now.  The  disciples  were  to  go 
on  till  they  reached  a  cross-road;  it  was  to  be  found 
this  side  of  the  village,  and  not  beyond  it;  there 
they  should  see  an  ass,  wdiich  should  be  tied,  and  by 
the  side  of  which  a  colt  should  be  standing.  Fur- 
thermore, the  conversation  of  the  owners  was 
given  word  for  word,  and  the  disciples  were  in- 
structed what  to  reply  so  as  to  secure  assent.  Here 
is  a  marvellous  illustration  of  our  Lord's  knowledge 
of  comino:  events  as  well  as  of  human  nature.      An- 


CHRIST  ENTERING  JERUSALEM.  179 

Other  instance  of  the  same  sort  is  found  in  the 
narrative  of  his  obtaining  a  guest-chamber  for  the 
Last  Supper. 

Now  if  any  one  asserts  that  this  is  trifling,  it  is 
needful  only  to  answer  that  just  because  these 
matters  are  so  simple  and  apparently  trivial,  it  be- 
comes impossible  to  predict  their  occurrence  except 
under  the  supernatural  spirit  of  prophecy.  And  we 
urgently  insist  that  this  artless  story  helps  us  to  un- 
derstand what  the  apostle  meant  when,  speak- 
ing some  years  after  this  of  Jesus  Christ,  he  de- 
clared that  i^  him  ''are  hid  all  the  treasures  of 
wisdom  and  knowledge:  for  in  him  dwelleth  all  the 
fulness  of  the  Godhead  bodily." 

II.  The  story  presents  to  view  Chris f  s  sover- 
eignty over  all  men,  ' '  And  they  went  their  way,  and 
found  the  colt  tied  by  the  door  without,  in  a  place 
where  two  ways  met:  and  they  loose  him.  And 
certain  of  them  that  stood  there  said  unto  them, 
What  do  ye,  loosing  the  colt?  And  they  said  unto 
them  even  as  Jesus  had  commanded:  and  they  let 
them  go." 

No  conjecture  has  ever  been  hazarded  concern- 
ing these  people  who  seem  to  have  owned  the 
animal  the  disciples  borrowed.  But  the  striking 
thing  to  be  noticed  is  found  in  their  instantaneous 
acquiescence  in  the  act,  the  moment  the  simple 
words  are  spoken  which  our  Lord  told  the  disciples 
to  use.  It  made  no  difference  that  they  were  perfect 
strangers  to  the  messengers  or  their  Master ;  it 
seems  to  have  been  enough  for  them  to  be  informed 
that  the  ''Lord  hath  need." 


l8o  STUDIKS   IN   mark's  GOSPEI.. 

Matthew  Henry  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that 
*' Christ  went  upon  the  water  in  a  borrowed  boat, 
ate  the  Passover  in  a  borrowed  chamber,  was  buried 
in  a  borrowed  sepulchre,  and  here  rode  upon  a  bor- 
rowed ass."  There  is  a  sense  in  which  it  may  be 
said  that  the  great  God  never  needs  anything.  *'  I 
will  take  no  bullock  out  of  thy  house,  nor  he-goats 
out  of  thy  folds.  For  every  beast  of  the  forest  is 
mine  and  the  cattle  upon  a  thousand  hills.  I  know 
all  the  fowls  of  the  mountains:  and  the  wild  beasts 
of  the  field  are  mine.  If  I  were  hungry,  I  would 
not  tell  thee:  for  the  world  is  mine  and  the  fulness 
thereof."  But  he  loves  to  give  those  who  love  him 
a  chance  to  think  themselves  serviceable.  And 
this  might  well  be  the  motto  of  every  true  Chris- 
tian life:  Surrender  always  when  '' the  Lord  hath 
need." 

III.  Then  again,  this  story  discloses  Christ's 
power  over  all  the  brute  creatiott.  *'  And  they  brought 
the  colt  to  Jesus,  and  cast  their  garments  on  him; 
and  he  sat  upon  him.  And  many  spread  their 
garments  in  the  way:  and  others  cut  down  branches 
oif  the  trees  and  strewed  them  in  the  way." 

No  other  instance  of  Jesus'  riding  on  an  animal 
of  any  sort  has  been  recorded  in  his  history;  and  of 
all,  this  must  have  been  a  beast  most  difficult  to  em- 
ploy in  a  confused  pageant.  Mark  and  Luke  both 
mention  that  the  colt  had  never  been  broken  in  nor 
even  ridden  before.  Matthew  adds  that  it  was  so 
young  as  still  to  be  running  with  its  mother;  and 
Zechariah  had  called  it  a  *'foal." 

Now  it  cannot   be  deemed  a  straining   of  the 


CHRIST   ENTKRING  JERUSALEM.  l8l 

proper  sense  here  if  we  call  attention  to  the  mani- 
fest miracle  wrought  upon  such  a  creature.  For 
the  uproarious  shouts  of  the  multitude,  and  the 
shrill  singing  of  the  children,  and  the  palms  and 
the  showy  garments  and  the  wild  excitement  all 
around,  render  it  one  of  the  most  wonderful  of  all 
considerations  that  this  ass's  colt,  the  very  type  of 
uncontroUableness  and  caprice,  should  become,  as  if 
in  an  instant,  tame  and  steady  for  the  Master's 
service.  It  is  because  this  part  of  the  narrative  is  so 
minute  and  unexpected  that  it  has  always  attracted 
the  surprised  attention  of  simple  rural  readers  of  the 
Bible,  who  are  aware  what  it  is  to  manage  so  iras- 
cible a  creature  and  one  so  generally  malicious. 
They  perceive  quickly  why  such  an  incident,  unap- 
preciated at  the  time,  afterwards  is  found  to  have 
made  an  impression  so  deep  as  to  be  mentioned 
alongside  of  the  raising  of  Lazarus  from  the  dead. 
*' These  things  understood  not  his  disciples  at  the 
first;  but  when  Jesus  was  glorified,  then  remem- 
bered they  that  these  things  were  written  of  him, 
and  that  they  had  done  these  things  unto  him.  The 
people  therefore  that  was  with  him  when  he  called 
Lazarus  out  of  the  grave,  and  raised  him  from  the 
dead,  bare  record. ' ' 

IV.  Once  more,  this  story  illustrates  Christ's 
majesty  as  the  Messiah  of  God.  Two  of  the  evange- 
lists quote  at  this  point  the  Old  Testament  prophecy 
concerning  this  triumphal  entry  into  Jerusalem: 
"And  they  that  went  before  and  they  that  fol- 
lowed cried,  saying,  Hosanna:  Blessed  is  he  that 
comctli  in  the  name  of  the  Lord:  Blessed  be  the 


l82  STUDIES  IN  mark's  GOSPEL. 

kingdom  of  our  father  David,  that  cometh  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord:  Hosanna  in  the  highest.'* 

We  recall  the  similar  instances  of  Jesus'  careful- 
ness in  gathering  up  the  various  passages  of  Scrip- 
ture which  still  remained  waiting  to  be  fulfilled, 
when,  hanging  upon  the  cross,  he  exclaimed,  "I 
thirst."  It  was  not  his  habit  thus  to  speak  of  his 
lowest  bodily  wants;  and  we  should  be  surprised, 
and  even  remain  at  a  loss  for  explanation  of  this 
cry,  if  we  were  not  explicitly  told  that  he  uttered  it 
in  order  that  "  the  Scriptures  might  be  fulfilled." 

So  here:  our  Lord  remembered  one  prediction 
which  needed  to  be  noticed  at  this  exact  crisis  of 
his  history.  He  rides  into  the  city,  not  for  any  vain 
bravado,  but  because  "it  is  written. ' '  It  would  not 
be  fair  to  argue  strongly  for  the  truth  of  Jesus' 
claims  just  from  this  pageant  of  entering  Jerusalem 
upon  an  animal  such  as  kings  used;  for  any  impos- 
tor could  have  read  Zechariah's  prediction  and  then 
laid  himself  out  to  fulfil  it.  It  is  simply  just,  how- 
ever, to  assert  that  in  this  singular  blending  of  the 
lofty  with  the  lowly  our  Lord  shows  the  kingliness 
of  his  nature  and  the  royalty  of  his  office.  He  rides 
upon  a  monarch's  beast  of  burden,  but  he  is  accom- 
panied by  the  most  unroyal  of  retinues.  We  must 
look  beneath  the  surface  if  we  hope  fully  to  under- 
stand this  demonstration.  He  is  a  king,  but  he 
apes  no  show  of  a  triumph.  Still,  there  is  a  majesty 
in  the  apparent  meanness,  easy  to  be  discovered 
through  the  humility  of  demeanor  which  tempers 
the  display. 

And  we  may  just  pause  a  moment  to  catch  our 


CHRIST   ENTERING  JERUSALEM.'  ^         .  183 

best  lesson:  *' Have  this  mind  in  you,  wliicli  was 
also  in  Christ  Jesus:  who,  being  in  the  form  of  God, 
counted  it  not  a  prize  to  be  on  an  equality  with 
God,  but  emptied  himself,  taking  the  form  of  a  ser- 
vant, being  made  in  the  likeness  of  men;  and  being 
found  in  fashion  as  a  man,  he  humbled  himself,  be- 
coming obedient  even  unto  death,  3^ea,  the  death  of 
the  cross.  Wherefore  also  God  highly  exalted  him, 
and  gave  unto  him  the  name  which  is  above  every 
name;  that  in  the  name  of  Jesus  every  knee  should 
bow,  of  things  in  heaven  and  things  on  earth  and 
things  under  the  earth,  and  that  every  tongue 
should  confess  that  Jesus  Christ  is  I^ord,  to  the 
glory  of  God  the  Father." 

V.  This  story  likewise  shows  Jesus'/^;r^  to  reveal 
human  character.  It  was  predicted  of  our  Lord  that 
by  him  should  ''  the  thoughts  of  many  hearts  be  re- 
vealed.'^ In  the  experience  of  three  classes  of  peo- 
ple here  recorded  this  is  evidently  fulfilled:  "And 
when  he  was  come  into  Jerusalem  all  the  city  was 
•moved,  saying,  Who  is  this?  And  the  multitude 
said,  This  is  Jesus,  the  prophet  of  Nazareth  of  Gali- 
lee." *'  And  when  the  chief  priests  and  scribes  saw 
the  wonderful  things  that  he  did,  and  the  children 
crying  in  the  temple,  and  saying,  Hosanna  to  the 
Son  of  David!  they  were  sore  displeased." 

One  group  cried  "Hosanna!"  another  group 
coldly  questioned,  "Who  is  this?"  and  a  third 
group  became  malignant  and  "were  sore  dis- 
pleased." We  can  have  no  doubt  that  Jesus  Christ 
anticipated  all  this  division  of  sentiment.  It  was 
what  usually  happened  whenever  he  appeared  pub- 


184  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEL.  ; 

licly.  "Now,  when  he  was  in  Jerusalem  at  the 
Passover,  in  the  feast-day,  many  believed  in  his 
name,  when  they  saw  the  miracles  which  he  did. 
But  Jesus  did  not  commit  himself  unto  them,  he- 
cause  he  knew  all  men,  and  needed  not  that  any 
should  testify  of  man:  for  he  knew  what  was  in 
man. ' ' 

It  is  likely  that  these  three  classes  of  persons 
will  always  be  disclosed  the  moment  the  name  of 
Jesus  Christ  is  preached.  What  is  in  the  human 
heart  will  come  out  into  an  unconscious  display. 
"Hosanna"  means,  "Save,  we  beseech."  Only 
those  who  are  of  the  truth  will  hear  the  Lord's 
voice  and  be  saved. 

VI.  Still  further:  this  story  proves  Christ's  fit- 
ness to  evoke  religiotis  enthusiasm.  All  the  four 
evangelists  record  the  words  of  the  people  on  this 
excited  occasion;  so  that  we  know  they  quoted  the 
ancient  ascription  of  praise  to  the  Messiah,  and  un- 
doubtedly intended  to  ascribe  their  highest  honors 
to  Jesus  as  the  Christ  of  God:  "  Blessed  be  he  that 
Cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord:  we  have  blessed 
you  out  of  the  house  of  the  Lord.  God  is  the  Lord, 
which  hath  showed  us  light:  bind  the  sacrifice  with 
cords,  even  unto  the  horns  of  the  altar.  Thou  art 
my  God,  and  I  will  praise  thee:  thou  art  my  God,  I 
will  exalt  thee.  Oh,  give  thanks  unto  the  Lord: 
for  he  is  good:  for  his  mercy  endureth  for  ever." 

The  scene  which  rises  on  our  imaginations  is  full 
of  the  loftiest  exhilaration.  Those  hosts  of  Passover 
pilgrims  sang  and  shouted,  cast  their  garments  in 
the  dust,  and  made  the  air  tremulous  with  the  wa- 


CHRIST   ENTERING  JERUSALEM.  185 

ving  of  their  triumphal  palms.  Their  adoring  ac- 
ceptance of  this  Nazarene  rabbi  drove  the  chief 
priests  into  unreasoning  anger.  They  even  tried  to 
force  Jesus  to  stop  the  mouths  of  the  populace;  but 
he  told  them  that  if  this  natural  and  proper  enthu- 
siasm should  be  repressed,  when  redemption  had 
come,  the  "very  stones  would  cry  out." 

It  is  a  frightful  mistake  to  suppose,  and  a  wilful 
perversion  to  assert,  that  Christianity  as  a  scheme  of 
faith  is  tame,  insipid,  and  lifeless.  It  cannot  be 
considered  even  witty  to  quote  in  such  a  connection 
Job's  petulant  words:  "Can  that  which  is  unsavory 
be  eaten  without  salt?  or  is  there  any  taste  in  the 
white  of  an  egg?"  For  the  fact  is,  the  religion  of 
Jesus  Christ  lifts  the  heart  and  satisfies  the  soul  bet- 
ter than  anything  else  ever  known  to  fallen  and 
saddened  men.  The  gospel  restores  the  race  and 
purifies  the  world.  There  is  nothing  lacking  in  the 
prophet's  description  of  its  welcome  results:  "And 
the  ransomed  of  the  Lord  shall  return,  and  come  to 
Zion  with  songs  and  everlasting  joy  upon  their 
heads:  they  shall  obtain  joy  and  gladness,  and  sor- 
row and  sighing  shall  flee  away." 

VII.  Finally,  this  story  suggests  Christ's  silent 
inquisition  for  wrong-doing.  We  get  the  expression 
from  the  Old  Testament:  "When  he  maketh  in- 
quisition for  blood  he  remembereth  them  :  he  for- 
getteth  not  the  cry  of  the  humble." 

Among  all  the  striking  pictures  which  this  entry 
of  Jesus  into  Jerusalem  presents,  not  one  can  be 
found  more  impressive  than  that  which  is  the  quiet- 
est and  the  last.      "  And  Jesus  entered  into  Jerusa- 


l86  STUDIES   IN   MARK'S   GOSPEL. 

lem  and  into  the  temple:  and  when  he  had  looked 
round  about  upon  all  things,  and  now  the  even-tide 
was  come,  he  went  out  unto  Bethany  with  the 
twelve." 

He  came  into  the  temple,  looked  around,  said 
nothings  and  departed.  He  had  a  way  of  looking 
thus:  at  his  disciples  once  with  anger  and  with 
orief;  at  Simon  Peter  once:  "he  turned  and  looked 
upon  Peter;"  so  here  he  looked  on  the  merchandise, 
the  stalls,  the  tables,  in  his  Father's  house!  Retri- 
bution was  coming  on  the  morrow. 


^'thk  head  of  the  corner.",         187 


XVIII. 
*'THE  HEAD  OF  THE  CORNER.'^ 

"And  have  yk  not  read  this  Scripture:  The  stone  which 
the  builders  rejected  is  become  the  head  of  the  cor- 
NER?"— Mark  12:10. 

The  wife  of  Thomas  Carlyle — a  personality  and 
a  character  of  as  much  force  in  her  way  as  her  hus- 
band— writes  in  her  journal  that  on  a  certain  occa- 
sion she  had  been  to  hear  a  scientific  lecture  in 
Exeter  Hall  in  London;  it  seems  to  have  been 
delivered  by  one  of  the  nobility  of  the  realm,  who 
gave  a  somewhat  unexpectedly  religious  turn  to  it 
in  the  development  or  application  of  his  subject. 
This  is  what  the  brisk  lady  wrote:  "The  crowd 
was  immense  and  the  applause  terrific ;  but  one 
thing  rather  puzzled  me:  at  every  mention  of  the 
name  of  '  Christ '  (and  there  was  far  too  much  of 
that),  the  clapping  and  the  stamping  rose  to  such  a 
pitch  that  one  expected  always  it  must  end  in  hip^ 
hip^  Jmrrah  !  Did  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation take  his  lordship's  recognition  of  'Christ' 
as  a  personal  compliment?  Or  did  it  strike  them 
with  admiration  that  a  British  lord  should  know 
about  Christ?" 

There  is  a  painful  amount  of  this  kind  of  toady- 
ism to  be  discovered  at  the  present  day  in  the 
applause  granted  to  men  of  conspicuousness,  either 
social  or  scientific,  because  they  patronizingly  admit 


l88  STUDIES   IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

the  general  claims  of  the  gospel  to  a  recognition 
among  so-called  thinkers  on  the  public  platform. 
The  old  question  is  asked  with  the  same  sniff  of 
superciliousness  it  had  years  ago,  "Have  any  of 
the  rulers  believed  on  Him?"  As  if  men's  belief 
settled  the  fact  of  our  Lord's  supremacy! 

The  rulers  never  did  believe  on  Jesus:  so  much 
the  worse  for  the  rulers !  Here  is  a  passage  of 
Mark's  gospel  coming  regularly  under  our  study 
this  morning,  and  giving  an  account  of  the  way  in 
which  the  Saviour  boldly  challenged  such  insuffer- 
able conceit.  Two  things  come  before  us ;  with 
helpful  texts  from  other  sources  they  will  claim 
special  attention:  a  New  Testament  parable  and  an 
Old  Testament  Psalm.  The  one  is  what  an  old 
divine  used  to  call  any  quotation  from  the  Bible  he 
made  as  a  proof- text,  ' '  the  clincher ' '  of  the  other. 
Let  us  look  at  the  details  of  the  story  first;  then  we 
shall  be  ready  to  consider  the  admonition  our  Lord 
intends  by  it.  *' And  he  began  to  speak  unto  them 
by  parables." 

I.  The  picture  suggested  by  the  scene  which 
Christ  calls  up  into  imagination  would  be  likely  to 
cause  surprise,  or  be  termed  an  exaggeration,  if  it 
were  laid  anywhere  outside  of  Palestine.  Down 
even  to  the  present  time  customs  remain  very 
much  the  same  as  in  Christ's  day  in  that  oppressed 
country. 

I.  The  insecurity  of  property  and  person  is  pro- 
verbial. The  Scripture  record  might  be  incorpo- 
rated into  the  ordinary  guide-books.  Thieves  and 
murderers  throng  the   tourist's   path  all    the  way 


*'the  head  of  the  corner."  1S9 

down  "  from  Jerusalem  to  Jericho,"  across  the  plain 
of  Esdraelon  to  Mt.  Carniel,  and  along  the  entire 
declivities  beside  the  Sea  of  Galilee.  No  man, 
stranger  or  home-born,  can  know  himself  to  be 
safe.  An  attack  may  always  be  expected,  provided 
a  surprise  is  possible  or  a  treachery  promises  ade- 
quate success  in  the  pilfering  of  a  purse. 

2.  There  has  been  in  all  ages  a  special  confu- 
sion of  iniquitous  dealing  in  respect  to  real  estate. 
Thievery  and  violence  seem  to  be  the  rule  in  the 
East,  peace  and  possession  the  exception.  Some- 
thing is  to  be  charged  to  the  Government;  the  laws 
are  indefinite  and  bribery  is  rife;  indeed,  the  Gov- 
ernment sets  the  example  of  systematized  crime. 
In  all  history  of  the  Holy  Land,  from  Christ's  time 
to  ours,  the  rulers  have  been  organized  for  official 
robbery  and  outrage.  No  titles  are  secure,  even 
when  one  has  paid  for  his  vineyard  or  his  building- 
plot. 

3.  Then,  too,  the  custom  of  committing  all 
oversight  and  control  of  farms  and  orchards  to 
underlings  makes  the  matter  a  great  deal  worse. 
Absenteeism  is  a  fruitful  reason  for  crime.  ^*A 
certain  man  planted  a  vineyard,  and  set  a  hedge 
about  it  and  digged  a  place  for  the  winefat  and 
built  a  tower,  and  let  it  out  to  husbandmen  and 
went  into  a  far  country."  The  parable  of  the 
vineyard,  which  appears  in  the  three  synoptical 
gospels,  was  the  more  readily  understood  because 
"the  song  of  my  beloved  touching  his  vineyard," 
in  Isaiah,  must  have  been  familiar  to  Christ's 
hearers.      As  there  *'the  vineyard  of  the  Lord  of 


190  STUDIES  IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

hosts  is  the  house  of  Israel,  and  the  men  of  Judah 
his  pleasant  plant,"  so  here  the  vineyard  stands  for 
the  theocratic  nation,  for  God's  peculiar  people; 
and  as  there  the  genuine  grapes  are  displaced  by 
wild  grapes,  so  here  there  is  no  return  to  the  owner. 

*^  And  at  the  season  he  sent  to  the  husbandmen 
a  servant,  that  he  might  receive  from  the  husband- 
men of  the  fruit  of  the  vineyard.  And  they  caught 
him  and  beat  him  and  sent  him  away  empty.  And 
again  he  sent  unto  them  another  servant;  and  at 
him  they  cast  stones  and  wounded  him  in  the  head, 
and  sent  him  away  shamefully  handled.  And 
again  he  sent  another;  and  him  they  killed,  and 
many  others,  beating  some  and  killing  some.  Hav- 
ing yet  therefore  one  son,  his  well-beloved,  he  sent 
him  also  last  unto  them,  saying,  They  will  rever- 
ence my  son.  But  those  husbandmen  said  among 
themselves,  This  is  the  heir;  come,  let  us  kill  him, 
and  the  inheritance  shall  be  ours.  And  they  took 
him  and  killed  him  and  cast  him  out  of  the  vine- 
yard. What  shall  therefore  the  lord  of  the  vine- 
yard do?  He  will  come  and  destroy  the  husband- 
men and  will  give  the  vineyard  unto  others." 

Those  men  in  charge  of  the  vineyard,  to  whom 
messenger  after  messenger  had  been  sent,  and  who 
now  were  peremptorily  addressed  by  the  owner  with 
a  final  demand  in  the  august  person  of  his  son,  are 
represented  as  communing  with  each  other,  and 
saying,  as  they  laid  the  wiles  of  their  conspiracy, 
what  might  be  construed  into  an  utterance  of  their 
belief  that,  if  this  one  inheritor  were  only  dead,  all 
heirship  would   be  extinguished.     More  than  one 


*'the  head  of  the  corner."  191 

parable  of  our  Lord  assumes  precisely  this  exposure 
to  pluuder  and  murder  from  one's  own  employes. 
To  this  there  could  be  no  barrier,  and  for  it  there 
could  be  neither  remedy  i!or  redress  before  the  law. 

4.  Still,  so  far  as  we  can  learn,  there  was  no 
ground  for  hope  of  success  in  this  plot.  No  enact- 
ment has  come  down  to  us  which  would  sustain 
such  an  entailment  or  division  or  heirship  as  those 
infamous  creatures  assumed.  Luke's  language 
(20:14)  agrees  with  Mark's;  but  Matthew  (21:38) 
says,  ''Let  us  seize  on  his  inheritance."  This 
suggests  the  true  interpretation.  The  husbandmen 
had  no  countenance  in  the  common  law;  they  in- 
tended to  say  that  they  would  make  the  vineyard 
theirs  by  violence,  and  hold  it  by  any  extremities 
of  force.  It  was  a  singularly  stupid  plan;  it  could 
not  have  even  a  plausible  look  anywhere  but  in 
that  wretched  region.  It  assumed  an  absence  of 
justice,  an  insecurity  of  possession,  an  immunity 
for  the  worst  crime,  positively  Oriental  in  its  tol- 
eration of  rapine  and  murder. 

5.  Add  to  this  the  fact  that  in  those  early  days, 
when  invention  had  not  yet  brought  firearms  into 
use,  the  measures  taken  for  homicide  were  brutal 
and  hard  beyond  description.  Not  even  spears  or 
daofeers  or  knives  are  used  there  for  assassination 
now  any  more  than  they  used  to  be.  The  coarse, 
rude  weapon  for  murder  is  a  club  or  bludgeon  of 
the  roughest  sort.  The  Bedouins  will  have  a  gun 
on  their  shoulders,  but  will  knock  their  victim  on 
the  head  with  a  knotted  stick  all  the  same.  The 
description  left  on  record  by  the  Psalmist  is  true  to 


192 

this  day:  *'He  sittetli  in  the  lurking-places  of  the 
villages;  in  the  secret  places  doth  he  murder  the 
innocent:  his  eyes  are  privily  set  against  the  poor. 
He  lieth  in  wait  secretly' as  a  lion  in  his  den;  he 
lieth  in  wait  to  catch  the  poor;  he  doth  catch  the 
poor,  when  he  draweth  him  into  his  net.  He 
croucheth  and  humbleth  himself  that  the  poor  may 
fall  by  his  strong  ones.  He  hath  said  in  his  heart, 
God  hath  forgotten:  he  hideth  his  face;  he  will 
never  see  if 

6.  Hence  this  frightful  picture  was  a  tremend- 
ous invective  as  well  as  a  vivid  illustration  when 
employed  by  our  Lord.  He  used  it  for  a  similitude 
in  one  of  his  most  direct  and  forcible  arraignments 
of  the  Jewish  nation  for  their  blind,  dull,  coarse, 
criminal  rejection  of  God's  only-begotten  Son,  de- 
spatched them  from  high  heaven  to  secure  his 
Father's  rights  from  those  who  had  grasped  after 
heirship  by  murder.  It  would  seem  as  if  the  very 
least  he  would  or  could  do  would  be  to  thrust  a 
gang  so  execrable  out  of  the  vineyard  and  give  it  to 
others. 

11.  We  turn  now  to  the  second  branch  of  the 
story.  Our  Lord  suddenly  drops  his  figure  and 
leaves  the  parable  altogether,  finishing  his  applica- 
tion with  a  quotation  from  one  of  the  most  familiar 
of  the  Psalms:  "And  have  ye  not  read  this  Scrip- 
ture, The  stone  which  the  builders  rejected  is  be- 
come the  head  of  the  corner?  This  was  the  Lord's 
doing,  and  it  is  marvellous  in  our  eyes.  And  they 
sought  to  lay  hold  on  him,  but  feared  the  people, 
for   they   knew   that   he   had   spoken   the   parable 


'^TIIK    IIICAD   OF   THE   CORNER.   '  I93 

against  tliem;  and  they  left  liim  and  went  their 
way. ' ' 

1.  Thus  he  ilhistrates  his  position.  He  claims 
a  Messianic  Psalm  for  himself.  Matthew  tells  us 
he  said  to  those  hearers  of  his  in  plain  words  that 
he  was  speaking  this  parable  concerning  them. 
And  he  chooses  to  show  them  that  for  himself  there 
was  no  fear  of  the  future:  "Therefore  I  say  unto 
you,  The  kingdom  of  God  shall  be  taken  from  you 
and  given  to  a  nation  bringing  forth  the  fruits 
thereof.  And  whosoever  shall  fall  on  this  stone 
shall  be  broken,  but  on  whomsoever  it  shall  fall,  it 
Vili  grind  him  to  powder."  The  "son"  of  the 
story  who  got  murder  instead  of  ' '  reverence ' '  is 
heard  of  no  more.  But  the  Son  of  God,  though 
"rejected"  now,  should  one  day  come  to  his  place 
of  honor.  They  imderstood  him  very  well,  for  in 
an  alarmed  sort  of  murmur  they  said,  "God  for- 
bid!" 

2.  Thus  he  predicts  his  eventful  triumph. 
There  is  a  tradition  of  the  Jewish  rabbis  which 
relates  the  history  of  a  wonderful  stone,  prepared, 
as  they  say,  for  use  in  the  building  of  Solomon's 
temple.  Each  block  for  that  matchless  edifice  was 
shaped  and  fitted  for  its  particular  place,  and  came 
away  from  the  distant  quarry  marked  for  the  ma- 
sons. But  this  one  was  so  different  from  any  other 
that  no  one  knew  what  to  do  with  it.  Beautiful 
indeed  it  was,  carved  with  figures  of  exquisite  love- 
liness and  grace;  but  it  had  no  fellow;  it  fitted  no- 
where ;  and  at  last  the  impatient  and  perplexed 
workmen  flung  it  aside  as  only  a  splendid  piece  of 

Stu.I'.cs  111  Mftik'H  OoHpcI.  Q 


194  STUDIES  IN  mark's  gospel. 

folly.  Years  passed  while  the  proud  structure  was 
going  up  without  the  sound  of  axe  or  hammer. 
During  all  the  time  this  despised  fragment  of  rock 
was  lying  in  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat  covered  with 
dirt  and  moss.  Then  came  the  day  of  dedication; 
the  vast  throng  arrived  to  see  what  the  Israelites 
were  wont  to  call  ^'the  noblest  fabric  under  the 
sun."  There  it  stood  crowning  the  mountain's 
ridge  and  shining  with  whiteness  of  silver  and  yel- 
lowness of  gold.  The  wondering  multitude  gazed 
admiringly  upon  its  magnificent  proportions,  grand 
in  their  splendor  of  marble.  But  when  one  said 
that  the  east  tower  was  unfinished,  or  at  least  looked 
so,  the  chief  architect  grew  impatient  again,  and 
replied  that  Solomon  was  wise,  but  a  builder  must 
admit  there  was  a  gap  in  his  plans.  By-and-by  the 
king  drew  near  in  person;  with  his  retinue  he  rode 
directly  to  the  incomplete  spot,  as  if  he  there  ex- 
pected most  to  be  pleased.  ''Why  is  this  neglect?" 
he  asked  in  tones  of  indignant  surprise:  "where  is 
the  piece  I  sent  for  the  head  of  this  corner?" 
Then  suddenly  the  frightened  workmen  bethought 
themselves  of  that  rejected  stone  which  they  had 
been  spurning  as  worthless.  They  sought  it  again, 
cleared  it  from  its  defilement,  swung  it  fairly  up 
into  its  place,  and  found  it  was  indeed  the  top-stone, 
fitted  so  as  to  e:ive  the  last  orrace  to  the  whole. 

3.  Thus  Jesus  also  clinches  his  argument.  He 
made  his  audience  see  that  he  was  fulfilling  every 
necessity  of  the  Messiah's  office  and  answering  to 
every  prediction  made  of  him,  even  do\vn  to  the 
receiving  of  the  "rejection  "  at  their  hands  as  tliey 


(( 


THE   HEAD   OF   THE   CORNER."  I95 


were  now  giving  it  to  him.  They  were  educated 
in  the  ancient  oracles  of  God,  and  were  wont  to 
admit  the  bearing  of  every  sentence  and  verse  of 
propliecy.  And  when  this  strange,  intrepid  Gali- 
lean asked  them,  "Did  ye  never  read  in  the  Scrip- 
ture?" they  saw  that  he  knew  his  vantage  with 
the  people,  and  would  be  strong  enough  to  hold  it 
against  their  violence  or  treachery.  There  was 
force  in  argument  when  one  brought  up  a  text 
inspired. 

What  filled  those  hearers  with  wrath  was  the 
implication  that  an  unknown  Israelite  had  turned 
against  his  own  nation  and  was  claiming  a  Messi- 
ahship  which  would  utterly  destroy  all  the  selfish 
hopes  they  had  been  reared  to  cherish.  What  the 
Jews  wanted  was  not  the  glory  of  God  in  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  new  kingdom  of  grace;  they  wished 
for  the  identical  kingdom  which  their  fathers  had 
had  when  David  shone  in  royal  splendor  and  Solo- 
mon covered  Jerusalem  with  glory.  They  had 
schooled  themselves  to  believe  that  they  owned 
this  entire  sovereignty  already.  They  had  no  no- 
tion of  surrendering  the  preeminence  even  to  God's 
Son. 

And  this  is  the  old  story  of  debased  human 
nature.  The  moment  a  man  begins  to  consider 
himself  master  and  owner  of  the  mercies  which  a 
beneficent  God  is  bidding  him  occupy  till  he  come; 
the  moment  he  gives  loose  rein  to  his  pride  because 
of  his  spiritual  or  temporal  advantage  over  others; 
the  moment  he  claims  that  the  silver  and  the  eold 
gathered  into  his  coffers,  the  acres  of  land  and  the 


196  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEI.. 

piles  of  houses  that  he  controls,  the  love  of  his  wife 
and  the  tenderness  of  his  children,  are  only  the 
proper  blessings  that  belong  to  his  merit;  that  mo- 
ment he  has  need  to  listen  to  that  ancient  cry  out 
of  heaven:  "Will  a  man  rob  God?  Yet  ye  have 
robbed  me."  For  the  tremendous  question  to  be 
answered  as  men  lift  up  their  proud  foreheads  in 
wealth  and  power  is  this:  "What  hast  thou  that 
thou  hast  not  received  ?  Who  owns  this  that  thou 
hast?"  They  are  like  the  wicked  husbandmen 
who  said  openly,  "This  is  the  heir;  come,  let  us 
kill  him,  and  let  us  seize  on  his  inheritance."  And 
then  the  Lord  will  simply  change  his  stewards: 
"He  will  miserably  destroy  those  wicked  men,  and 
will  let  out  his  vineyard  unto  other  husbandmen, 
which  shall  render  him  the  fruits  in  their  seasons." 

4.  Thus  likewise  our  Lord  enlightened  their 
consciences.  There  is  something  more  than  logi- 
cal defeat  in  their  manner  after  this  conversation; 
there  is  spiritual  dismay  and  consternation.  "  They 
knew  that  he  had  spoken  this  parable  against 
them."  It  was  necessary  to  silence  this  terrible 
voice  of  denunciation.  But  like  all  time-servers, 
they  were  afraid  of  the  popular  cry.  So  they  stood 
convicted  and  stubborn  and  dared  his  wrath. 

It  is  useless  for  us  to  waste  any  more  time  in  the 
contemplation  of  these  Pharisees  who  now  deliber- 
ately set  themselves  to  complete  the  picture  Jesus 
had  drawn  of  them  in  his  parable,  and  murder  the 
messenger  God  had  sent  them  as  the  last  he  should 
ever  send,  saying,  "Surely  they  will  reverence  my 
Son."     To  us  they  appear  like  the  picture  which 


^'TIIK   HEAD  OF  THE   CORNER."  197 

the  mystic  St.  Theresa  said  she  saw  *'with  the 
eyes  of  her  soul"  the  moment  she  faced  a  certain 
priest  whom  she  was  accustomed  to  meet  daily;  he 
was  fair  and  in  his  morality  even  stern,  sanctimoni- 
ous in  devotion;  but  she  declared  she  always  saw 
two  devils  encompassing  his  neck,  with  their  horns 
interlocked  irresistibly  above  his  beautiful  head. 

Our  concern  is  no  longer  with  them;  we  have  a 
lesson  for  our  own  souls  to  learn.  God  says  to  us  in 
these  latter  days,  and  with  all  the  more  force  now 
that  the  claims  of  Jesus  Christ  to  be  the  true  Mes- 
siah are  acknowledged,  "Surely  they  will  rever- 
ence my  Son."  Will  we  listen  to  the  voice  from 
heaven,  or  will  we  first  fall  on  the  stone  which  the 
builders  rejected,  and  then  invite  it  to  fall  upon  us 
and  "grind  us  to  powder"?  We  have  the  author- 
ity of  Lord  Bacon  for  asserting  that  in  no  instance 
to  be  found  in  the  range  of  classical  literature,  not 
even  in  the  poetical  works  of  the  ancients  where 
the  heroes  are  mentioned  by  name,  do  we  discover 
that  any  of  them  besides  Diomedes  ever  offered  an 
act  of  violence  to  any  one  of  their  deities,  bad  as 
they  were;  and  Diomedes  suffered  punishments  the 
most  cruel  afterwards  for  his  impiety,  being  at  last 
put  to  death  by  his  soldiers.  Thus  the  heathen 
showed  a  most  salutary  and  exemplary  caution  as 
to  revering  with  a  becoming  awe  the  gods  they 
worshipped.  Alas  for  the  daring  of  a  mortal's  con- 
tempt when  Jesus,  God's  only -begotten  Son,  is 
spurned,  reviled,  rejected! 

There  is  another  lesson  for  us  to  learn :  see  what 
pains  a  wicked  man  will  take  to  spite  the  Saviour 


198  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

who  came  to  save  him.  Look  at  this  zealous  crowd 
of  conspirators  who  are  planning  to  betray  Jesus 
Christ:  "And  they  watched  him,  and  sent  forth 
spies,  which  should  feign  themselves  just  men,  that 
they  might  take  hold  of  his  words,  that  so  they 
might  deliver  him  unto  the  power  and  authority  of 
the  governor."  It  was  a  wise  comment  made  by 
old  Kenelm  Digby  years  and  years  ago  as  he  looked 
around  upon  the  souls  wasting  their  energies  in 
•disputing  an  undoubted  message  of  mercy  from 
heaven:  "Men  take  more  pains,"  said  he  sadly, 
"to  lose  themselves  than  would  be  requisite  to  keep 
them  in  the  right  road !"  We  see  the  same  perver- 
sity in  our  day.  Oh,  how  hard  men  will  work — 
men  who  might  be  saved,  who  might  be  saved ! — 
oh,  how  hard  they  will  work  and  conspire  and  plan 
and  toil  just  to  be  danmed! 

Cannot  we  be  convinced  also,  as  we  study  this 
story,  that  we  do  not  need  to  cringe  and  beseech  for 
a  little  notice  for  "  Christ"  from  a  skeptic,  a  phi- 
losopher, or  a  duke  ?  Jesus  has  already  become 
the  "Head  of  the  corner."  This  entire  world 
measures  its  dates  by  the  year  when  he  was  born. 
The  whole  race  is  divided  into  Christians  and 
heathen,  a  division  as  sharp  in  intelligence  as  it  is 
in  worth  or  manhood.  We  do  not  bend  to  earthly 
grandeur  nor  blush  for  our  Lord's  shame  any  more. 
Godfrey  de  Bouillon,  the  first  king  of  Christian 
Jerusalem,  never  wore  any  crown;  he  suffered  no 
one  to  put  a  diadem  on  his  head,  for  he  said  he 
could  not  wear  gold  on  the  spot  where  his  Lord 
wore  only  thorns.     A  like  loyalty  of  true  chivalric 


199 

devotion  characterized  his  successor  on  the  same 
throne,  Baldwin  ;  for,  when  under  pressure  of  the 
patriarch  he  felt  it  was  necessary  to  assume  his 
place  among  sovereigns  by  a  public  coronation,  he 
went  down  from  the  capital  to  modest  Bethlehem, 
that  the  pageant  might  be  performed  where  his 
King,  the  King  of  kings,  was  born.  The  nations 
are  becoming  Christian;  the  day  is  near  for  the 
seventh  of  God's  angels  to  shout  and  for  the  great 
voices  in  heaven  to  say,  "The  kingdoms  of  this 
world  are  become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  of 
his  Christ;  and  he  shall  reign  for  ever  and  ever." 

Finally,  we  learn  the  infinite  peril  of  any  fur- 
ther delay.  This  question  of  accepting  Christ  as 
our  Saviour  and  Surety  or  of  rejecting  him  presses 
for  a  swift  and  permanent  decision.  It  is  hard  and 
dreadful  to  fall  upon  a  stone;  what  if  the  stone 
becomes  active  and  of  itself  falls  upon  us  ?  It 
hurts,  it  bruises,  it  maims,  it  cripples  just  to  be 
*' broken;"  what  must  it  be  for  one  to  be  "ground 
into  powder ' '  ? 

One  of  the  best  of  modern  preachers  of  England 
tells  us  that,  away  up  in  a  lonely  Highland  valley, 
beneath  a  tall  black  cliff,  weather-worn  and  cracked 
and  seamed,  he  once  saw  lying  at  the  foot,  resting 
on  the  greensward  that  crept  round  its  base,  a  huge 
rock  which  had  apparently  fallen  with  terrible  vio- 
lence from  the  face  of  the  precipice.  He  learned 
that  a  shepherd  had  been  passing  exactly  there  at 
the  awful  moment;  and  suddenly,  when  the  finger 
of  God's  will  touched  it,  rending  it  from  its  ancient 
bed  in  the  everlasting  rock,  it  came  down,  leaping 


2CX)  STUDIES   IN   MARK'S   GOSPEL. 

and  bounding  from  pinnacle  to  pinnacle;  it  struck 
the  unfortunate  man  and  literally  ground  him  to 
powder.     The  fragments  lie  underjteath  it  now  ! 

That  is  the  figure:  like  that  is  the  fate  of  those 
on  whose  final  impenitence  falls  the  wrath  of  God 
for  the  rejection  of  his  Son.  A  wuld  and  weird 
image  it  is  for  even  rhetoric  to  use;  but  it  is  not 
our  human  simile  by  choice,  it  is  Christ's.  He 
will  be  a  bruised  brother  at  the  best  who  falls  on 
the  stone  that  the  builders  rejected;  but  he  will  be 
ground  to  powder  on  whom  the  *'  head  stone  of  the 
corner ' '  falls ! 


THE   GREAT   COMMANDMENT.  201 

XIX. 
THE  GREAT  COMMANDMENT. 

"Which  is  the  first  commandment  of  ALL7"—Mark  12:28. 

There  often  arises  an  outcry  when  settled  opin- 
ions are  questioned,  and  when  decisions  made  by 
those  old  in  power  are  deliberately  subjected  to  in- 
vestigation as  if  they  were  no  better  than  any  other 
man's  and  no  more  sacred.  Archbishop  Leigh  ton, 
speaking  of  the  times  before  the  appearance  of  the 
Wesleys  and  their  coadjutors,  says:  ''The  church 
was  a  fair  carcass  without  a  spirit.'*  This  state- 
ment the  annalist  Burnet  confirms:  "The  clergy 
had  less  authority,  and  were  under  more  contempt, 
than  those  of  any  other  church  in  Europe;  for  they 
were  much  the  more  remiss  in  their  labors  and  the 
least  severe  in  their  lives."  Into  the  midst  of  this 
apathy  and  worldliness  came  those  preachers,  with 
torches  in  their  hands  which  both  lighted  and 
burned  the  people  in  the  depths  of  their  souls. 
There  was  a  tempest  of  wrath  in  England. 

It  seems  sometimes  like  a  thankless  task  to  at- 
tempt to  arouse  a  whole  community  or  generation 
of  people  from  the  gathered  apathy  and  traditions  of 
unspiritual  ages.  Indeed,  for  a  while  it  seems  as  if 
we  were  making  matters  worse. 

But  no  modern  picture  can  fittingly  represent 
the   alarm  and  consternation  of  those  scribes  and 

9* 


202  STUDIES  IN   MARK'S  GOSPKU 

Pharisees  into  the  midst  of  whose  fine-spun  theories 
and  absurd  practices  came  the  teaching  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ.  Think  of  the  explosiveness  of  a  state- 
ment of  doctrine  and  duty  like  that  in  the  chapter 
before  us  to-day.  No  wonder  it  threw  those  hearers 
into  sullen  silence  so  deep  that  they  could  ask  no 
more  questions.  Let  us  take  it  up  for  examination, 
point  by  point. 

L  What  was  the  scheme  of  religious  life  which 
our  Lord  proposed  to  put  in  the  place  of  the  whole 
system  of  Judaism  as  it  now  confronted  him  ? 
This  must  come  up  as  our  earliest  question  for  an 
answer. 

I.  He  reduced  the  prolixity  and  confusion  of 
enactments  at  once.  Those  lawyers,  that  is  to  say, 
the  scribes  of  the  law,  had  gone  far  away  already 
from  the  Ten  Commandments  of  Moses;  they  had 
enough  matter  in  their  hands  for  five  hundred  more 
Decalogues.  The  air  around  them  was  fairly  thick 
and  dusty  with  smoke  from  their  hair-splitting  de- 
bate and  denunciation.  Jesus  made  short  work 
with  their  glosses,  giving  only  two  laws  in  place  of 
a  thousand:  love  to  God,  love  to  one's  neighbor. 
*'And  one  of  the  scribes  came,  and  having  heard 
them  reasoning  together,  and  perceiving  that  he 
had  answered  them  well,  asked  him.  Which  is  the 
first  commandment  of  all?  And  Jesus  answered 
him,  The  first  of  all  the  commandments  is.  Hear,  O 
Israel;  The  Lord  our  God  is  one  Lord:  and  thou 
shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart  and 
with  all  thy  soul  and  with  all  thy  mind  and, with 
all   thy  strength;  this   is  the   first   commandment. 


TIIK   GREAT   COMMANDMENT.  203 

And  the  second  is  like,  namely  this,  Thou  shalt  love 
thy  neighbor  as  thyself.  There  is  none  other  com- 
mandment greater  than  these." 

Martin  Luther  once  wrote:  *'The  words  of  the 
apostle  Paul  are  not  dead  w^ords;  they  are  living 
creatures,  they  have  hands  and  feet."  Who  can 
measure  the  power  of  the  words  Jesus  Christ  spoke, 
accordinof  to  an  estimate  like  this?  For  they  were 
more  than  living  creatures;  he  said  himself,  "It  is 
the  Spirit  that  quickeneth;  the  flesh  profiteth  noth- 
ing ;  the  words  that  I  speak  unto  you,  they  are 
spirit  and  they  are  life."  In  this  is  found  the 
reason  of  his  popularity  outside  of  the  aristocratic 
circles  in  Judaea;  "the  common  people  heard  him 
gladly."  Dean  Stanley  noticed  when  he  was  trav- 
elling in  the  Orient  one  constant  gesture  used  in 
the  Mussulman  devotions;  it  was  to  place  the  hands 
near  the  ears,  as  if  to  listen  for  some  possible  mes- 
sengers or  messages  from  the  other  world.  That  is 
the  natural  and  instinctive  attitude  for  a  sincere 
soul  to  assume.  The  moment  we  can  secure  a  fit 
standing-spot  above  and  beyond  the  stir  and  the 
noise,  the  confusions  and  the  dissipations,  of  this 
mortal  world,  we  put  our  hand  to  our  ear;  for  we 
long  to  receive  truth  and  love  from  on  high.  In 
Jesus'  preaching  the  populace  knew  they  had  what 
was  trustworthy.  He  came  within  a  common 
man's  reach,  and  fought  out  his  spiritual  battles 
with  him. 

2.  Then,  besides  reducing  the  number  of  the 
enactments,  our  Lord  carefully  exhibited  the  spirit 
which  was  underlying  the  principle  that  was  pecu- 


204  STUDIES   IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

liar  to  both.  Love  was  shown  to  be  the  fulfilling  of 
the  law.  ^'And  the  scribe  said  unto  him,  Well, 
Master,  thou  hast  said  the  truth,  for  there  is  one 
God:  and  there  is  none  other  but  he;  and  to  love 
him  with  all  the  heart  and  with  all  the  under- 
standing and  with  all  the  soul  and  with  all  the 
strength,  and  to  love  his  neighbor  as  himself,  is 
more  than  all  whole  burnt  offerings  and  sacri- 
fices." 

Love,  then,  nothing  more,  nothing  less,  is  the 
basis  of  obedience  and  the  foundation  of  all  our 
hope  of  salvation;  not  duty,  not  liberality,  not  self- 
sacrifice,  but  love — honest  affection  into  which  we 
put  at  least  these  four  elements,  the  most  important 
in  our  entire  being:  heart,  soul,  mind,  and  strength. 
The  love  God  requires  must  be  perfect  in  each  par- 
ticular; otherwise  it  is  no  better  than  what  the 
scribes  in  Christ's  time  had.  They  claimed  that 
their  legalism  grew  out  of  love. 

IL  Now,  in  the  second  place,  we  need  to  ask 
how  one  having  this  masterful  love  can  keep  it 
from  being  rendered  useless  by  his  own  act. 

I.  It  may  lose  the  ''  heart "  out  of  it.  It  was  fa- 
bled that  Mohammed's  coffin  was  suspended  in  the 
air  halfway  between  heaven  and  earth;  that  is  no 
place  for  a  Christian  surely  while  he  is  alive. 
Christ  said,  '*  Ye  cannot  serve  God  and  mammon." 
Look  at  the  account  given  of  the  military  people 
who  wanted  to  make  David  king:  "All  these  men 
of  war,  that  could  keep  rank,  came  with  a  perfect 
heart  to  Hebron  to  make  David  king  over  all 
Israel:  and  all  the  rest  also  of  Israel  were  of  one 


THE   GREAT   COMMANDMENT.  205 

heart  to  make  David  king."  They  kept  rank, 
shoulder  to  shoulder.  That  was  the  way  to  march 
up  to  the  coronation  of  a  monarch.  ^'They  were 
not  of  double  heart:"  alongside  of  that  expression  in 
the  margin  you  will  find  this,  "without  a  heart 
and  a  heart."  No  man  can  love  God  with  a  heart 
for  him  and  another  heart  for  somebody  or  some- 
thing else.  See  how  fine  seems  the  zeal  of  Naa- 
man  when  he  scoops  up  some  loads  of  earth  from 
the  soil  of  Israel,  that  he  may  bear  it  over  into  Syria 
for  an  altar  to  Jehovah;  and  now  see  how  he  takes 
the  whole  worth  out  of  it  by  the  absurd  proposition 
that,  when  his  royal  master  walks  in  procession  to 
the  temple  of  Rimmon,  he  may  be  permitted  to  go 
as  he  always  went,  kneeling  down  to  the  idol  with 
the  rest  of  the  heathen  worshippers! 

2.  This  love  may  likewise  lose  the  "soul"  out 
of  it.  We  always  expect  to  see  some  generous  sen- 
sibility in  the  behavior  of  true  men  and  women.  If 
the  world  is  commonplace,  it  is  refreshing  to  see 
now  and  then  some  little  measure  of  sentiment  and 
imagination  and  feeling.  We  like  to  read  that  upon 
Jenny  Lind's  cofhn  wa5  silently  laid  at  her  funeral, 
by  Otto  Goldschmidt,  her  husband,  a  wreath  of 
myrtle  made  from  a  tree  planted  years  ago  by  the 
great  singer  herself  in  the  shape  of  a  tiny  twig 
plucked  from  her  wedding  wreath.  It  seems  beau- 
tiful and  pathetic  to  know  that  such  things  in  our 
day  can  be  found  as  genuine  affection  reaching 
across  from  the  bridal  to  the  tomb,  faithful  to  re- 
member youth  and  brightness  even  after  they  have 
faded  and  vanished  for  ever.     True  aflfection  always 


206  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

has  a  purpose  in  it  too,  unfaltering,  unwavering, 
persistent  to  the  end.  A  carrier  pigeon  was  picked 
up  in  New  Jersey  the  other  day.  An  investigation 
showed  that  it  had  been  released  with  nine  others 
from  a  town  in  the  southern  part  of  the  State  and 
had  become  lost  from  the  rest.  These  birds  never 
give  up  their  search  for  the  point  they  are  seeking 
to  reach.  It  had  flow^n  on  and  on  till  it  became  ex- 
hausted, when  it  fell  and  evidently  died  of  starva- 
tion. Ought  not  a  human  being  to  have  as  much 
principle  and  direct  grit  of  determination  as  a  bird 
going  home  to  a  nest?  When  the  heart  is  gone, 
and  so  there  is  no  interest  in  loving,  and  the  soul  is 
gone,  and  there  is  no  purpose  in  loving,  where  is 
love? 

3.  Then  this  love  may  be  injured  by  losing  the 
*'mind"  out  of  it.  All  true  affection  is  intelligent. 
We  say  ''love  is  blind,"  but  what  we  mean  is  that 
it  is  blind  to  faults;  love  is  wise  and  alert,  and  con- 
stant in  perceiving  excellences.  Defections  from 
the  true  doctrines  of  the  Scriptures  are  inevitably 
followed  by  a  low  state  of  piety.  A  man  becomes  a 
backslider  the  moment  he  drops  into  insecurity  of 
conviction.  In  some  quarters  at  the  present  day  it 
is  deemed  an  evidence  of  growth  in  Christian  life  to 
speak  lightly  of  confessions  and  catechisms  ;  will 
men  be  thouo:htful  enouo:h  to  remember  that  the 
great  work  of  this  world  has  been  accomplished  by 
those  who  really  had  something  to  believe  and  con- 
sistently believed  it?  A  creed  gives  courage. 
Every  genuine  worker  for  Jesus  Christ  takes  what 
Jesus  said  to  be  truth,  and  he  turns  to  it  for  guid- 


THE   GREAT   COMMANDMENT.  207 

aiice  and  inspiration.  At  the  basis  of  even  a 
prayer-meeting  there  needs  to  be  an  intellectual 
conception  of  the  gospel  methods  and  plans  of 
grace.  This  is  what  gives  consistency  to  character 
in  any  child  of  God.  What  vitiates  so  mncli  of  our 
modern  devotion  is  mere  emotion  as  opposed  to 
steady  principle  in  the  performance  of  drudgery. 
*'I  ministered  once,"  said  Bishop  Huntington,  "in 
a  church  where  a  pew  stood  for  a  million  of  dollars. 
There  were  generous  men  and  saintly  women 
among  them  not  a  few.  But  it  only  happened  once 
in  nine  years  that,  after  I  had  announced  an  offer- 
ing for  a  following  Sunday,  a  person  stopped  after 
the  service  to  say,  *  I  must  be  absent  next  Sunday 
and  wish  you  to  take  my  gift  now.'  She  was  not  a 
Samaritan,  but  a  cook,  and  she  was  to  be  absent  to 
cook  a  rich  man's  dinner,  and  I  had  some  reason  to 
suspect  that  her  gift  was  larger  than  his." 

III.  Now  comes  our  third  question:  How  should 
this  love  be  exercised?  This  brings  us  straight  to 
the  eleventh  commandment,  which  our  Lord  de- 
clares is  new  in  some  respects,  but  in  its  spirit  is 
like  the  rest  of  the  Decalogue:  "A  new  command- 
ment I  give  unto  you.  That  ye  love  one  another;  as 
I  have  loved  you,  that  ye  also  love  one  another.  By 
this  shall  all  men  know  that  ye  are  my  disciples,  if 
ye  have  love  one  to  another."  We  are  bidden  to 
love  our  neisrhbor  as  ourselves. 

I.  Who  is  our  neighbor?  The  answer  to  this  if 
found  in  the  parable  of  the  Good  Samaritan  (Luke 
10:29-37).  Our  neighbors,  primarily  and  etymo- 
logically  speaking,  are  the  men,  women,  or  children 


208  STUDIES   IN    MARK'S   GOSPElv. 

who  stand  nearest  to  us  in  the  ordinary  relations 
of  life.  But,  judging  from  the  particulars  of  our 
Lord's  story,  we  ought  to  give  more  pertinence  to 
the  thought  of  need  on  their  part  and  of  fitness  and 
ability  on  our  part  to  bring  help.  Those  who  are  a 
step  lower  in  good  fortune  or  happy  lot  than  ours 
would  seem  to  claim  special  interposition.  The  one 
grand  question  God  is  asking  of  this  world  at  the 
present  moment  is  this:  What  shall  the  strong  do 
for  the  weak  ? 

2.  What  are  we  to  do  for  our  neighbor?  The 
answer  to  all  such  questions  is  found  in  the  Golden 
Rule:  "And  as  ye  would  that  men  should  do  to 
you,  do  ye  also  to  them  likewise.  For  if  ye  love 
them  which  love  you,  what  thank  have  ye?  for  sin- 
ners also  love  those  that  love  them.  And  if  ye  do 
good  to  them  which  do  good  to  you,  what  thank 
have  ye  ?  for  sinners  also  do  even  the  same.  And  if 
ye  lend  to  them  of  whom  ye  hope  to  receive,  what 
thank  have  ye  ?  for  sinners  also  lend  to  sinners,  to 
receive  as  much  again.  But  love  ye  your  enemies, 
and  do  good,  and  lend,  hoping  for  nothing  again; 
and  your  reward  shall  be  great,  and  ye  shall  be  the 
children  of  the  Highest;  for  he  is  kind  unto  the  un- 
thankful and  to  the  evil.  Be  ye  therefore  merciful 
as  your  Father  also  is  merciful." 

There  is  certainly  something  more  intended  in 
this  extensive  deliverance  than  a  recommendation 
to  Christians  to  be  liberal  in  the  contributions 
needed  by  ordinary  charitable  institutions  or  meth- 
ods of  supply.  Underlying  the  facts  are  supposed  to 
be  feelings.    The  Bible  statement  is,  "  Blessed  is  he 


THE   GREAT   COMMANDMENT.  209 

that  considcrcth  the  poor."  Surely  that  refers  to 
more  than  money.  We  must  do  to  our  neighbor  the 
thing  we  should  wish  him  to  do  to  us  if  positions 
were  exactly  reversed  in  each  case:  we  are  to  com- 
fort his  body,  aid  his  estate,  enlighten  his  mind, 
advance  his  interests,  and  save  his  soul.  There  is  a 
story  that  a  priest  stood  upon  the  scaffold  with  Joan 
of  Arc  till  his  very  garments  took  fire  with  the 
flames  which  were  consuming  her,  so  zealous  was 
he  for  her  conversion. 

IV.  Only  one  more  question  remains  to  be  an- 
swered :  Does  the  possession  of  this  love  as  a  princi- 
ple of  life  make  a  man  a  Christian? 

I.  Let  us  observe  thoughtfully  what  the  Saviour 
says  to  the  Jewish  scribe  with  whom  he  had  been 
talking:  *'And  when  Jesus  saw  that  he  answered 
discreetly,  he  said  unto  him.  Thou  art  not  far  from 
the  kingdom  of  God."  This  language  is  pictorial; 
it  represents  the  man,  like  Hopeful  in  the  "Pil- 
grim's Progress,"  as  walking  on  towards  the  Celes- 
tial City ;  and  thus  conceived,  he  was  probably 
making  conscientious  search  after  truth  and  right- 
eousness. In  his  intellectual  belief  he  made  a  very 
excellent  confession.  He  told  the  Lord  that  to  do 
what  he  had  announced  was  beyond  anything  his 
religion  so  far  had  had  to  offer;  it  was  worth  more 
than  all  sacrifices  and  ceremonial  performances.  If 
he  went  forth,  on  that  memorable  occasion,  deter- 
mined to  live  what  he  had  just  now  openly  ac- 
knowledged, and  if  he  followed  out  the  purpose 
with  prayer  and  repentant  confession,  then  he  cer- 
tainly became  a  true  believer  in  Jesus. 


210  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

2.  But  we  must  go  farther  for  ourselves  before 
we  decide;  for  we  have  had  more  light  than  that 
scribe  of  Israel's  law.  Jesus  said  unto  him,  "This 
do,  and  thou  shalt  live."  And  yet  all  the  time  we 
must  remember  that  the  love  to  one's  neighbor 
grows  out  of  the  love  to  God  as  its  first  condition; 
we  must  love  our  neighbor  because  we  love  God,  for 
his  own  sake;  we  must  love  our  neighbor  because 
the  neighbor  has  relations  to  God  just  as  sacred  as 
ours;  we  must  love  him  for  God's  sake. 

3.  Again:  it  is  not  what  we  do  for  any  one  that 
saves  our  souls.  Faith  and  repentance,  not  works 
of  benevolence  or  charity,  are  the  established  condi- 
tions of  our  receiving  the  atonement  Jesus  made  for 
sin  on  the  cross;  and  that  is  what  makes  a  man  a 
genuine  Christian.  We  open  our  hearts  to  God's 
love  for  us,  and  then  out  of  the  fulness  of  a  new 
divine  love  in  ourselves  we  begin  to  love  others; 
that  is  the  love  which  counts,  not  to  make  us  Chris- 
tians, but  to  show  we  are  such.  The  order  of  expe- 
rience is  unalterable.  "None  know  how  to  prize 
the  Saviour,"  wrote  the  good  Lady  Huntingdon, 
"but  such  as  are  zealous  in  pious  works  for 
others." 

4.  So,  finally,  our  greatest  danger  is  disclosed  at 
once  in  this  exercise  of  doing  good  to  those  around 
us.  It  comes  from  the  tendency  of  our  nature  to 
thrust  self  forward  into  every  religious  experience. 
It  is  so  easy  to  grow  complacent  over  our  attain- 
ments or  exploits,  when  really  they  rise  up  out  of 
our  pity  or  our  pride  of  patronage.  In  the  most  in- 
dustrious moments  we   have   there  will  sometimes 


THE   GREAT  COMMANDMENT.  211 

come   a   sense   of  sweet   self-congratulation   as  we 
think  how  good  and  amiable  we  are. 

It  is  related  of  the  great  sculptor  Michael 
Angelo  that  when  at  work  he  wore  over  his  fore- 
head, fastened  to  his  artist's  cap,  a  lighted  candle,  in 
order  that  no  shadow  of  himself  might  fall  on  his 
work!  It  was  a  beautiful  custom  and  spoke  a  more 
eloquent  lesson  than  he  knew!  For  the  shadows 
that  fall  on  our  work — how  often  they  fall  from  our- 
selves! It  is  the  quiet  work  we  do  because  we  love 
the  Master  that  tells  on  an  unconverted  soul  stand- 
ing close  by;  he  sees  that  we  love  him  when  each 
feature  of  his  face  constitutes  a  provocation;  for  he 
sees  we  love  God. 

"  There  is  no  end  to  the  sky,  and  the  stars  are  everywhere, 
And  time  is  eternity  and  the  here  is  over  there ; 
For  the  common  deeds  of  the  common  day 
Are  ringing  bells  in  the  far-away." 


213  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 


XX. 


TROUBLE  JUST  AHEAD. 

"  Tell  us,  when  shall  these  things  be?  and  what  shall  be 
the  sign  when  all  these  things  shall  be  fulfilled?" — 
Mark  13:4. 

The  chapter  before  us  is  not  easy  of  interpreta- 
tion in  many  of  its  particulars,  because  the  sugges- 
tions Ox^  doctrine  glide  so  imperceptibly  and  fitfully 
between  the  predictions  of  Jerusalem's  downfall  and 
the  prophecies  of  the  w^orld's  end  that  we  cannot 
always  fix  their  exact  application.  It  appears  as  if 
it  might  be  as  well  on  the  present  occasion  to  oc- 
cupy ourselves  with  what  is  plain  and  practical, 
and  not  lose  our  time  in  speculation  upon  what  is 
not  certainly  revealed. 

I.  We  learn,  in  the  beginning,  that  Jerusalem 
was  openly  announced  as  doomed  to  fall  before  it 
fell.  Some  specific  incidents  were  related  before- 
hand which  would  test  the  prophetic  power  of  Jesus 
Christ  there  at  once,  and  put  within  reach  of  his 
disciples  a  confutation  or  a  confirmation  of  his 
claims.  "And  as  he  went  out  of  the  temple  one  of 
his  disciples  saith  unto  him.  Master,  see  what  man- 
ner of  stones  and  what  buildings  are  here !  And 
Jesus  answering  said  unto  him,  Seest  thou  these 
great  buildings?  There  shall  not  be  left  one  stone 
upon  another  that  shall  not  be  thrown  down." 

It  hardly  needs  to  be  stated,  for  the  whole  mat- 


TROUBLE   JUST   AHEAD.  213 

tcr  is  SO  familiar,  that  the  predictions  of  this  city's 
overthrow  showed  that  our  Lord  spoke  with  a  per- 
fect knowledge  of  the  events  he  mentioned  as  corn- 
in  e  on  the  earth.  The  site  of  that  old  town  is  a 
well-known  fact;  no  one  thinks  of  disputing  the 
locality.  The  historic  books  of  the  Jews  tell  how 
Jerusalem  was  overthrown  by  the  Romans.  Any 
one  can  ask  and  answer  whether  the  stones  arc 
large,  whether  they  are  in  position  or  not.  The 
city  lies  "on  heaps."  Mt.  Zion  is  "ploughed." 
The  temple  is  gone.  Those  vast  walls  are  scat- 
tered. Some  few  stones  of  prodigious  size  yet 
remain  in  what  were  the  foundations  of  the  edifices 
and  in  the  cavernous  substructions  underground. 
No  one  can  pass  out  of  the  modern  Jaffa  gate  and 
push  on  around  along  the  declivity  of  Zion  till  he 
enters  again  the  gate  of  Stephen  without  uncon- 
sciously saying  to  himself,  "See  what  manner  of 
stones  !" 

II.  We  learn  next,  as  we  continue  to  read  the 
verses,  that  it  is  lawful  to  inquire  for  the  time  of 
fulfilment  of  Scriptural  prophecy.  It  is  not  right 
to  attempt  to  set  it,  but  if  it  can  be  ascertained,  so 
much  the  better  for  our  understanding,  and  in  that 
direction  our  duty  lies.  "And  as  he  sat  upon  the 
]\Iount  of  Olives,  over  against  the  temple,  Peter  and 
James  and  John  and  Andrew  asked  him  privately, 
Tell  us,  when  shall  these  things  be?  and  what  shall 
be  the  sign  when  all  these  things  shall  be  fulfilled?" 

No  one  can  look  upon  that  most  interesting 
picture  suggested  here,  of  Jesus  sitting  tranquilly 
among  his  eager  disciples  and  answering  their  ques- 


214  STUDIES    IN   mark's   GOSPEI.. 

tions  concerning  the  future,  and  draw  any  other 
inference  than  that  of  the  Master's  full  consent  to 
their  curiosity.  On  the  contrary,  he  tells  them 
most  important  facts  concerning  the  great  times 
coming. 

It  is  absurd  to  say,  just  because  some  persons 
have  uttered  wild  things  and  confounded  the  fright- 
ened people  with  a  storm  of  words  without  knowl- 
edge, that  no  one  is  permitted  to  study  prophecy. 
What  does  the  apostle  John  say?  ^'Blessed  is  he 
that  readeth  and  they  that  hear  the  words  of  this 
prophecy,  and  that  keep  those  things  which  are 
written  therein,  for  the  time  is  at  hand.'' 

III.  We  learn  also  just  here  that  there  will  be 
one  special  token  of  the  world's  end  which  will  -not 
fail:  "  the  gospel  must  first  be  published  among  all 
nations."  Very  carefully  chosen  is  this  phraseol- 
ogy. We  are  not  told  here  that  all  nations  are  to 
be  converted  by  the  gospel  before  the  true  Christ 
shall  come  again,  but  that  they  are  all  to  hear  it. 
It  would  seem  as  if  it  could  not  be  a  difficult  thing 
to  decide  so  evident  a  fact  as  this  assumes  whenever 
it  should  occur.  Most  of  us  would  no  doubt  be  sur- 
prised to  learn  how  many  of  the  nations  on  the  face 
of  the  earth  have  really  already  heard  the  tidings  of 
salvation,  and  it  is  not  impossible  that  the  joyous 
moment  is  very  nigh.  It  is  time  certainly  to  be 
thoughtful. 

It  is  within  the  memory  of  almost  all  of  us  that 
the  fixed,  and  with  some  good  old  men  the  stereo- 
typed, prayer  for  monthly  concert  for  many  a  year 
was  that  God  would  open  China  to  the  gospel  and 


TROUBLE  JUST   AHEAD.  215 

break  down  the  barriers  in  Japan.  Now  there  is 
in  most  of  the  world  nothin<r  in  the  way  except 
the  hardness  of  men's  hearts.  Growth  has  been 
made  in  evangelizing  effort  that  startles  us  when 
we  think  of  it.  Lately,  the  conversion  of  a  nation 
in  a  day,  as  once  seemed  to  be  the  case  in  Mada- 
gascar, has  come  to  appear  less  and  less  strange. 
Spiritual  uprisings  of  whole  peoples  at  a  time  have 
been  recorded  in  our  generation. 

IV.  We  learn  also  that  when  the  end  of  the 
world  draws  nigh  it  will  be  heralded  and  accom- 
panied with  most  dire  convulsions  and  troubles; 
''For  in  those  days  shall  be  affliction  such  as  was 
not  from  the  beginning  of  the  creation  which  God 
created  unto  this  time,  neither  shall  be.  And  ex- 
cept that  the  Lord  had  shortened  those  days,  no 
flesh  should  be  saved;  but  for  the  elect's  sake, 
whom  he  hath  chosen,  he  hath  shortened  the  days.'* 

It  cannot  be  stated  precisely  what  is  intended  in 
these  awful  sentences  of  prediction.  Families  are 
to  be  broken  up  by  treachery  among  the  members: 
nations  are  to  be  disrupted  by  wars  and  insurrec- 
tions; the  solid  earth  will  shake,  and  the  mountains 
and  islands  will  be  moved  out  of  their  places;  the 
world  will  stagger  like  a  drunken  man;  there  will 
be  distress  and  wrath,  and  the  sea  and  the  waves 
will  be  roaring;  and  men's  hearts  will  be  failing 
them  with  fear  and  for  looking  after  those  things 
which  are  coming  on  the  earth.  (Luke  21:25.) 
The  descriptions  of  the  great  day  of  the  Lord  are 
the  strangest  and  the  strongest  in  the  Bible:  the 
sun  will  be  black  and  the  stars  will  fall  out  of  the 


2l6  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

sky;  the  heavens  will  depart  as  a  scroll  (Isa.  34:4); 
then  there  shall  be  nothing  between  us  and  the  face 
of  God.     (Rev.  6:12-17.) 

How  much  of  all  this  is  figurative  and  how 
much  is  literal  no  one  can  tell.  It  is  enough  for  us 
to  know  that  the  day  of  judgment  will  afford  no 
proper  time  for  tranquil  thinking,  for  believing  in  a 
Saviour,  for  saving  repentance  of  one's  sins. 

V.  So  w^e  are  ready  for  our  final  lesson  from 
the  passage:  Men  need  to  prepare  for  such  a  day  as 
this  before  it  shall  prove  to  be  too  late.  It  is  easy 
for  us  to  see  now  the  relevancy  of  what  has  been 
said  by  the  royal  preacher  (Prov.  22:3),  **A  pru- 
dent man  foreseeth  the  evil  and  hideth  himself." 
There  is  but  one  refuge  for  any  human  soul:  Christ 
is  our  hiding-place;  he  will  preserve  us  from  trou- 
ble.    (Psa.  32:7.)    If  we  believe  in  him  we  are  safe. 

It  is  revealed  in  the  Scriptures  that  the  coming 
of  our  Lord  to  judge  the  world  will  find  some  men 
in  a  condition  of  apathy  and  listlessness.  They 
will  be  eating  and  drinking,  marrying  and  giving 
in  marriage.  (Matt.  24:37-39.)  They  will  be  buy- 
ing and  selling,  planting  and  building,  as  they  were 
in  Lot's  time.  (Luke  17:28-30.)  Better  for  us, 
who  are  studying  to  know  God's  will  this  impres- 
sive hour,  to  call  on  the  Lord  at  once  and  be  secure 
in  him.  For  it  is  also  revealed  in  the  Scriptures 
that  those  who  are  the  true  children  of  God  will 
be  glad  when  they  see  all  these  awful  wonders 
begin  to  arrive.  So  Jesus  says,  "And  when  these 
things  begin  to  come  to  pass,  then  look  up  and  lift 
up  your  heads,  for  your  redemption  draweth  nigh." 


TROUBI^K  JUST   AHEAD.  21; 

"We  picture  death  as  coming  to  destroy;  let  us 
rather  picture  Christ  as  coming  to  save.     We  think 
of  death  as  ending;    let  us  rather  think  of  life  as 
beginning,  and  that  more  abundantly.     We  think 
of  losing;  let  us  think  of  gaining.     We  think  of 
parting;   let  us  think  of  meeting.      We   think  of 
going  away;  let  us  think  of  arriving.     And  as  the 
voice  of  death  whispers,  '  You  must  go  from  earth,' 
let  us  hear  the  voice  of  Christ  saying,  *  You  are  but 
coming  to  me.'  "     These  were  the  bright  words  of 
Norman   McLeod;   and   those   of  Richard    Baxter 
were  like  them,    only   more  full  of  longing  still: 
*' Haste,  O  my  Saviour,  the  time   of  thy  return! 
Delay   not,    lest    the    living  give  up  hope.      Oh, 
hasten  that  great  resurrection-day  when  the  seed 
thou  sowedst  corruptible  shall  come  forth   incor- 
ruptible, and  the  graves  that  retain  but  dust  shall 
return  their  glorious  ones,  thy  destined  Bride!" 


lO 


2l8 


XXL 
OUR  ABSENT  LORD. 

*'  For  the  Son  of  man  is  as  a  man  taking  a  far  journey,  who 
left  his  house  and  gave  authority  to  his  servants,  and 
to  every  man  his  work,  and  commanded  the  porter  to 
WATCH." — Mark  13:34. 

No  one  can  read  the  New  Testament  without 
perceiving  that  the  calls  of  divine  grace  are  persist- 
ent and  unceremonious,  as  if  there  might  be  danger 
in  the  delay  of  acceptance.  Sinners  are  urged  to 
immediate  repentance  of  their  sins  before  it  is  too 
late  to  avail  for  their  salvation.  Haste  is  becoming 
necessary  with  each  passing  moment;  the  crisis  is  at 
hand. 

What  crisis?  When  the  texts  are  grouped  to- 
gether  it  ought  to  be  apparent  to  every  one  that 
there  are  three  motives  addressed  by  three  formulas 
of  warning,  and  not  just  one  alone.  The  ungodly 
man  is  told  that  his  time  of  spiritual  probation  may  he 
short — he  may  die:  "Whatsoever  thy  hand  findeth 
to  do,  do  it  with  thy  might;  for  there  is  no  work 
nor  device  nor  knowledge  nor  wisdom  in  the 
grave,  whither  thou  goest;'*  that  his  chalice  of  divine 
help  may  he  forfeited — the  Holy  Ghost  may  withdraw: 
"And  the  Lord  said,  My  Spirit  shall  not  always 
strive  with  man;''  that  his  career  may  he  C2it  short  by 
the  abrupt  end  of  the  world — Christ  may  come  to  judg- 
ment: "Watch  therefore,  for  ye  know  neither  the 


OUR   ABSENT   LORD.  219 

day  nor  the  hour  wherein  the  Son  of  man  cometh.'^ 
Tiiese  three — death,  reprobation,  and  the  second  ad- 
vent— are  often  confounded  in  pulpit  appeals  and 
parental  admonitions  which  it  is   hoped  will  incite 
to  obedience  and  lead  perishing  souls  into  new  life. 
But  many  of  the  verses  are  not  by  any  possibility  of 
fair  interpretation  to  be  discharged  of  meaning  by 
referring  them  to  the  mere  risk  of  one's  dying  at  an 
unforeseen   date,   and   so    losing    his   opportunity. 
Some  men  are  lost   before  they  die:  ''Kphraim  is 
joined  to  idols:  let  him  alone."     And  some  women 
too:  "  She  that  livetli  in  pleasure  is  dead  while  she 
liveth."     Some   persons   are   not  going   to   die   at 
all:  *' Behold,  I  show  you  a  mystery;  we  shall  not 
all  sleep,  but  we  shall  all  be  changed."     Some  will 
go   to  heaven  without   ever  having  been   buried: 
"Then  we  which  are  alive  and  remain  shall   be 
caught  up  together  with  them  in  the  clouds,  to  meet 
the  Lord  in  the  air:  and  so  shall  we  ever  be  with 
the  Lord." 

The  parable,  which  pictures  our  divine  Re- 
deemer as  planning  to  revisit  this  world  of  ours, 
cannot  be  discharged  of  its  meaning  by  a  reference 
to  the  ordinary  risks  of  human  mortality.  Its  theme 
is  not  man's  dying,  but  Christ's  coming. 

Doubtless  we  shall  be  able  to  reach  the  whole 
significance  of  its  teaching  to  us  better  by  an  orderly 
rehearsal  of  the  lessons  to  be  learned  from  it  under 
careful  exposition. 

I.  To  begin  with,  Christ  is  represented  as  a 
householder  on  a  journey  with  the  evident  purpose 
of  returning:  *' For  the  Son  of  man  is  as  a  man 


220  STUDIES    IN    MARK'S   GOSPEL. 

taking  a  far  journey,  who  left  his  house  and  gave 
authority  to  his  servants,  and  to  every  man  his 
work,  and  commanded  the  porter  to  watch." 

1.  It  is  not  fair  to  look  petulantly  upon  Jesus  as 
a  mere  **  absentee"  lord  of  the  soil.  We  must  not 
say  jealous  things  about  his  *' reaping  where  he  has 
not  sown."  For  he  made  this  world;  he  has  ran- 
somed the  race;  he  has  suffered  wonderfully  to  save 
souls;  and  he  rightly  owns  what  he  has  purchased. 

2.  It  must  be  remembered  that  Christ  went 
away  for  a  most  gracious  purpose  in  behalf  of  his 
people:  *' Nevertheless  I  tell  you  the  truth:  It  is 
expedient  for  you  that  I  go  away:  for  if  I  go  not 
away,  the  Comforter  will  not  come  unto  you;  but  if 
I  depart,  I  will  send  him  unto  you."  He  makes  the 
point  explicitly  in  order  to  lift  the  depressed  spirits 
of  his  followers.  The  presence  and  official  work  of 
the  Third  Person  of  the  Trinity  would  at  this  mo- 
ment be  more  to  their  advantage  than  that  of  the 
Second.  The  Comforter  would  do  more  for  them 
than  he  could.  Moreover,  he  was  personally  needed 
elsewhere  in  their  behalf.  He  was  going  away  to 
* '  prepare  a  place ' '  for  them ;  he  would ' '  come  again. ' ' 

3.  It  is  better  to  wait  and  pray  for  his  return 
than  to  cavil  at  his  departure. 

"Coming!  coming!    Oh.isitso? 

Do  we  hear  the  sound  of  thy  chariot  wheels  ? 
Saviour,  all  else  that  we  long  to  know 
We  will  leave  till  thy  wiser  love  reveals. 

"  The  hours  pass  slowly  ;  the  morning  chime 
Is  long  in  sounding.     But  let  us  wait ; 
Soon  we  shall  come  to  the  end  of  time 
And  see  the  Lord  at  the  golden  gate." 


OUR   ABSENT    LORD.  221 

II.  To  every  one  "  our  absent  Lord''  has  given 
his  own  work  to  do:  "Watch  ye  therefore:  for  ye 
know  not  when  the  master  of  the  house  cometh,  at 
even  or  at  midnio^ht  or  at  the  cock-crowinQf  or  in 
the  morning:  lest  coming  suddenly  he  find  you 
sleeping.  And  what  I  say  unto  you  I  say  unto  all, 
Watch." 

1.  There  is  a  work  to  be  WTought  on  ourselves. 
Our  bodies  are  to  be  exercised  and  skilled  for  ser- 
vice: "I  beseech  you  therefore,  brethren,  by  the 
mercies  of  God,  that  ye  present  your  bodies  a 
living  sacrifice,  holy,  acceptable  unto  God,  which  is 
your  reasonable  service."  Our  minds  are  to  be  de- 
veloped and  embellished  for  God's  praise.  One  of 
our  Lord's  parables  spoken  on  this  very  occasion 
has  actually  added  to  our  language  the  new  word 
"talents"  as  signifying  intellectual  gifts.  Our 
souls  are  to  be  sanctified  wholly:  "And  the  very 
God  of  peace  sanctify  you  wholly;  and  I  pray  God 
your  whole  spirit  and  soul  and  body  be  preserved 
blameless  unto  the  coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ." 

2.  There  is  also  a  work  to  be  wrought  upon 
others  and  for  others.  The  poor  are  to  be  succored, 
the  weak  to  be  strengthened,  the  ignorant  to  be 
taught,  the  sorrowful  to  be  comforted.  This  is  the 
significance  of  that  other  parable  our  Lord  spoke  on 
this  same  occasion.  He  declares  that  not  doing  is 
to  be  reckoned  as  well  as  doing,  and  that  everything 
is  to  be  reckoned  as  " unto  me "  or  "not  unto  me." 

3.  There  is  another  work  to  be  wrought  for 
God's  glory.     "Man's  chief  end  is  to  glorify  God 


223  STUDIES  IN   MARK'S  GOSPEL. 

and  to  enjoy  him  for  ever.'^  Our  whole  life  is  to  be 
consecrated  to  this,  even  down  to  the  particulars  of 
eating  and  drinking.  *' Whether  therefore  ye  eat  or 
drink,  or  whatsoever  ye  do,  do  all  to  the  glory  of 
God.^'  We  cannot  increase  God's  *' inherent" 
glory,  but  we  can  augment  his  "declarative'' 
glory.  That  is  to  say,  we  cannot  bring  him  more 
glory,  but  we  can  show  the  glory  he  has.  That  is 
what  the  third  parable  our  Lord  gave  must  mean: 
*'Then  shall  the  kingdom  of  heaven  be  likened 
unto  ten  virgins,  which  took  their  lamps  and  went 
forth  to  meet  the  bridegroom."  The  virgins  were 
expected  to  swell  the  brilliant  train  of  the  bride- 
groom and  make  the  night  shine  with  their  torches 
as  the  procession  drew  near.  They  did  not  make 
his  marriage  splendid,  but  they  lit  up  the  splendor 
it  had. 

III.  Our  *'  absent  Lord"  is  surely  coming  back 
again  to  this  world.  This  is  the  subject  of  the 
whole  parable.  Every  sentence  in  it  is  meant  to 
teach  and  impress  that  fact. 

I.  He  predicted  his  second  advent  only  a  few 
days  before  in  the  plainest  words :  '  ^  Ye  have  heard 
how  I  said  unto  you,  I  go  away  and  come  again 
unto  you.  If  ye  loved  me,  ye  would  rejoice  be- 
cause I  said,  I  go  unto  the  Father:  for  my  Father  is 
greater  than  I." 

The  language  Jesus  used  in  this  remembered 
declaration  is  not  at  all  figurative;  it  all  goes  to- 
gether as  a  statement  of  fact.  He  said,  literally,  he 
would  send  the  Comforter,  and  the  Holy  Spirit 
came  in  person  on  the  Day  of  Pentecost.      And  just 


OUR   ABSENT    LORD.  223 

as  literally  did  lie  say  lie  would  himself  return  at 
the  appointed  time. 

2.  He  asseverated  the  certainty  and  solemnity  of 
his  own  promise,  as  if  he  foresaw  some  would  deny 
or  doubt  it:  "Heaven  and  earth  shall  pass  away; 
but  my  words  shall  not  pass  away."  This  was  in- 
dorsing the  covenant  engagement  by  a  new  oath; 
*'  because  he  could  swear  by  no  greater,  he  sware  by 
himself."  Christ  was  the  ''  Word,"  and  so  what  he 
said  would  stand  for  ever,  when  the  grass  should 
wither  and  the  flower  should  fade. 

3.  He  left  behind  him  vivid  descriptions  of  the 
momentous  day  on  which  he  should  arrive:  '^  But 
in  those  days,  after  that  tribulation,  the  sun  shall  be 
darkened  and  the  moon  shall  not  give  her  light, 
and  the  stars  of  heaven  shall  fall  and  the  powers 
that  are  in  heaven  shall  be  shaken.  And  then  shall 
they  see  the  Son  of  man  coming  in  the  clouds  with 
great  power  and  glor3%"  In  these  words,  however, 
he  does  little  more  than  repeat  the  vigorous  lan- 
guage of  the  Old  Testament  prophet:  "  I  beheld  till 
the  thrones  were  cast  down,  and  the  Ancient  of  days 
did  sit,  wdiose  garment  was  white  as  snow  and  the 
hair  of  his  head  like  the  pure  wool:  his  throne  was 
l^ke  the  fiery  flame  and  his  wheels  as  burning  fire. 
A  fiery  stream  issued  and  came  forth  from  before 
him:  thousand  thousands  ministered  unto  him,  and 
ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand  stood  before  him: 
the  judgment  was  set  and  the  books  were  opened." 
Our  Lord  makes  a  reference  to  this  ancient  predic- 
tion and  accompanies  it  with  vivid  details. 

4.  He  even  sent  back  word  from  heaven  by  an 


ZZ^  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

angel  to  say  this.  While  the  disciples  wistfully 
stood  gazing  after  the  ascending  Redeemer,  there 
suddenly  appeared  two  messengers  from  Jesus  him- 
self with  a  gracious  rebuke  for  their  forgetfulness  of 
his  promise  and  a  quick  renewal  of  it:  *^  And  while 
they  looked  steadfastly  towards  heaven  as  he  went 
up,  behold,  two  men  stood  by  them  in  white  ap- 
parel; which  also  said,  Ye  men  of  Galilee,  why 
stand  ye  gaining  up  into  heaven?  This  same  Jesus, 
which  is  taken  up  from  you  into  heaven,  shall  so 
come  in  like  manner  as  ye  have  seen  him  go  into 
heaven."  It  should  be  ''this  same  Jesus"  who 
should  come  back,  and  he  should  come  "in  like 
manner"  as  they  had  seen  him  depart.  Is  it  possi- 
ble that  any  Christian  now,  after  all  this,  should 
doubt  that  our  Saviour  will  be  on  earth  again  by- 
and-by  ? 

IV.  The  exact  hour  in  which  "our  absent 
Lord"  will  arrive  is  not  announced:  "But  of  that 
day  and  that  hour  knoweth  no  man,  no,  not  the 
angels  which  are  in  heaven,  neither  the  Son,  but  the 
Father.  Take  ye  heed,  watch  and  pray:  for  ye 
know  not  when  the  time  is." 

I.  Jesus  asserted  that  he  did  not  know  it  himself. 
The  disciples  once  asked  him  about  this:  "  And  as 
he  sat  upon  the  Mount  of  Olives,  the  disciples  came 
unto  him  privately,  saying.  Tell  us,  when  shall 
these  things  be  ?  and  what  shall  be  the  sign  of  thy 
coming  and  of  the  end  of  the  world  ?  And  Jesus 
answered  and  said  unto  them.  Take  heed  that  no 
man  deceive  you.  For  many  shall  come  in  my 
name,  saying,  I  am  Christ:  and  shall  deceive  many. 


OUR   ABSENT   LORD.  225 

And  ye  shall  hear  of  wars  and  rumors  of  wars:  see 
that  ye  be  not  troubled:  for  all  these  things  must 
come  to  pass,  but  the  end  is  not  yet. ' '  Luke  records 
the  impression  made  by  this  conversation  more 
fully,  as  he  commences  the  book  of  the  Acts: 
"V/hen  they  therefore  were  come  together,  they 
asked  of  him,  saying,  Lord,  wilt  thou  at  this  time 
restore  again  the  kingdom  to  Israel?  And  he  said 
unto  them.  It  is  not  for  you  to  know  the  times  or 
the  seasons  which  the  Father  hath  put  in  his  own 
power. ' ' 

Thus  Jesus  taught  plainly  that  God  the  Father 
had  kept  this  one  secret  in  his  own  solemn  reserve. 
He  may  have  meant  that  in  his  subordinate  office 
as  the  anointed  Christ  he  had  not  been  made  ac- 
quainted with  this  specific  date;  or  that  he  was 
not  commissioned  to  declare  it  as  part  of  his  gospel 
message,  it  being  unknown  to  the  plan;  or  that,  in 
assuming  human  nature  as  the  Son  of  man,  his  di- 
vine omniscience  was  limited  in  this  and  like  par- 
ticulars. It  is  enough  for  us  to  understand  that 
here  is  a  decided  rebuff  for  the  modern  curiosity 
which  assumes  to  fix  times  and  seasons  that  Jesus 
himself  said  had  not  been  revealed  to  him. 

2.  But  our  Saviour  declares  that  his  coming 
might  be  looked  for  at  any  moment,  morning  or 
midnight,  evening  or  cock-crowing.  It  would  as- 
suredly be  sudden.  The  figure  is  employed  more 
than  once  in  the  Scriptures  of  "a  thief  in  the 
night."  Peter  in  his  Epistle  only  quotes  our 
Lord's  own  language:  "But  the  day  of  the  Lord 
will  come  as  a  thief  in  the  night;  in  the  which  the 

lO* 


226  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPEL. 

heavens  shall  pass  away  with  a  great  noise  and  the 
elements  shall  melt  with  fervent  heat,  the  earth  also 
and  the  works  that  are  therein  shall  be  burned  up." 

3.  Moreover,  Christ  told  his  disciples  that  there 
would  be  tokens  of  the  nearness  of  this  great  day 
by  which  it  might  be  recognized  when  it  should  be 
close  at  hand;  "  Now  learn  a  parable  of  the  fig-tree. 
When  her  branch  is  yet  tender,  and  putteth  forth 
leaves,  ye  know  that  summer  is  near:  so  ye,  in  like 
manner,  when  ye  shall  see  these  things  come  to 
pass,  know  that  it  is  nigh,  even  at  the  doors." 
These  signs  would  be  as  clearly  discerned  as  shoots 
on  fig-trees  in  the  opening  summer.  He  mentioned 
some  of  them  explicitly:  "And  there  shall  be  signs 
in  the  sun  and  in  the  moon  and  in  the  stars;  and 
upon  the  earth  distress  of  nations,  with  perplexity; 
the  sea  and  the  waves  roaring;  men's  hearts  failing 
them  for  fear  and  for  lookinof  after  those  thino^s 
which  are  coming  on  the  earth:  for  the  powers  of 
heaven  shall  be  shaken.  And  then  they  shall  see 
the  Son  of  man  coming  in  a  cloud  with  power  and 
great  glory."  We  may  admit  that  "wars  and  ru- 
mors of  wars,"  earthquakes,  famines,  falling  stars, 
and  pestilences,  together  with  "great  signs  in 
heaven  and  earth,"  are  alarming  disclosures;  but 
will  any  one  doubt  that  such  phenomena  are  con- 
spicuous at  least  ? 

4.  So  Jesus  insisted  that  men  were  bound  to  be 
wise  in  noting  these  signs  and  be  ready.  People 
who  could  shrewdly  and  correctly  predict  changes  in 
the  weather  just  by  observing  the  color  of  the  sky, 
so  as  to  say  that  one  day  would  be  fair  and  another 


OUR   ABSENT   LORD.  22/ 

would  be  foul,  our  Saviour  called  "hypocrites"  if 
they  could  not  with  equal  alertness  of  skill  "discern 
the  signs  of  the  times. ' ' 

V.  The  greatest  peril  is  that,  when  "our  absent 
Lord"  comes,  men  will  be  taken  unawares:  "But 
and  if  that  evil  servant  shall  say  in  his  heart.  My 
Lord  delayeth  his  coming,  and  shall  begin  to  smite 
his  fellow-servants  and  to  eat  and  drink  with  the 
drunken,  the  lord  of  that  servant  shall  come  in 
a  day  when  he  looketh  not  for  him,  and  in  an 
hour  that  he  is  not  aware  of,  and  shall  cut  him  asun- 
der and  appoint  him  his  portion  with  the  hypo- 
crites ;  there  shall  be  weeping  and  gnashing  of 
teeth." 

1.  The  instinctive  tendency  of  the  human  heart 
is  to  procrastinate  in  the  performance  of  religious 
work.  So,  when  the  reckoning  is  demanded,  souls 
are  surprised.  If  all  the  good  resolutions  that  have 
been  made  by  members  of  the  church  of  God  had 
been  executed  in  their  due  time,  the  millennial  glory 
would  long  ago  have  gleamed  on  every  hill  and 
shone  in  every  valley. 

2.  Time  glides  mysteriously  on  with  no  refer- 
ence to  daring  delay.  The  grave,  like  the  horse- 
leech's daughter,  cries,  Give,  give!  and  damnation 
slumbereth  not;  but  men^leep  clear  up  to  the  edge 
of  divine  judgment.  They  did  in  Noah's  time,  and 
in  Lot's,  when  a  less  catastrophe  Was  at  hand;  and 
so  it  will  be  when  the  Son  of  man  is  revealed. 

3.  Christians  ought  to  hold  in  memory  the  re- 
peated admonitions  they  have  received.  Walter 
Scott  wrote  on  his  dial-plate  the  two  Greek  words 


228  STUDIES   IN   MARK'S   GOSPEL. 

which  mean  "  the  night  cometh,"  so  that  he  might 
keep  eternity  in  mind  whenever  he  saw  the  hours 
of  time  flitting  by.  Evidently  the  apostle  Paul 
feels  that  he  has  the  right  to  press  peculiarly  perti- 
nent and  solemn  appeals  upon  those  who  had  en- 
joyed the  advantage  of  such  long  instruction. 

4.  There  is  no  second  chance  offered  after  the 
first  is  lost.  When  Christ  comes  foolish  virgins  will 
have  no  time  to  run  for  oil  to  pour  into  their  light- 
less  lamps.  A  forfeited  life  cannot  be  allowed  any 
opportunity  for  retrieval.  Where  the  tree  falls, 
north  or  south,  there  it  must  lie,  whether  the  full 
fruit  has  been  ripened  on  its  branches  or  not. 

VI.  The  final  counsel  left  behind  him  by  '*our 
absent  Lord"  is  for  all  to  watch:  "Watch  there- 
fore, for  ye  know  neither  the  day  nor  the  hour 
wherein  the  Son  of  man  cometh." 

1.  Christ's  coming  would  seem  to  be  the  highest 
anticipation  for  true  believers.  When  he  appears, 
saints  will  appear  with  him  in  glory.  This  is  the 
"blessed  hope"  of  the  church  along  the  ages:  "  For 
the  grace  of  God  that  bringeth  salvation  hath  ap- 
peared to  all  men,  teaching  us  that,  denying  ungod- 
liness and  worldly  lusts,  we  should  live  soberly, 
righteously,  and  godly  in  this  present  world,  look- 
ing for  that  blessed  hope  and  the  glorious  appear- 
ing of  the  great  God  and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ." 

2.  It  might  clear  an  inquirer's  experience  to 
think  of  this  coming  of  Jesus.  Does  one  love  to 
"  watch  "  for  him  ?  In  the  autobiography  of  Fran- 
ces Ridley  Havergal  we  are  told  of  the  years  during 
which  she  sought  sadly  for  peace  at  the  cross.     At 


OUR   ABSENT   LORD.  229 

last  one  of  lier  teachers  put  this  question  to  her: 
"  Why  cannot  you  trust  yourself  to  your  Saviour  at 
once?  Supposing  that  now,  at  this  moment,  Christ 
were  to  come  in  the  clouds  of  heaven  and  take  up 
his  redeemed,  could  you  not  trust  him  ?  Would  not 
his  call,  his  promise,  be  enough  for  you?  Could 
you  not  commit  your  soul  to  him,  to  your  Saviour, 
Jesus?"  This  lifted  the  cloud;  she  tells  the  story 
herself:  *'Then  came  a  flash  of  hope  across  me 
which  made  me  feel  literally  breathless.  I  remem- 
ber how  my  heart  beat.  'I  could  surely,'  was  my 
response;  and  I  left  her  suddenly  and  ran  away  up 
stairs  to  think  it  out.  I  flung  myself  on  my  knees 
in  my  room  and  strove  to  realize  the  sudden  hope. 
I  was  very  happy  at  last.  I  could  commit  my  soul 
to  Jesus.  I  did  not,  and  need  not,  fear  his  coming. 
I  could  trust  him  with  my  all  for  eternity.  It  was 
so  utterly  new  to  have  any  bright  thoughts  about 
religion  that  I  could  hardly  believe  it  could  be  so, 
that  I  had  really  gained  such  a  step.  Then  and 
there  I  committed  my  soul  to  the  Saviour,  I  do  not 
mean  to  say  without  any  trembling  or  fear,  but  I 
did — and  earth  and  heaven  seemed  bright  from  that 
moment — /  did  tnist  the  Lord  yesus^ 


22P  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEI.. 


XXII. 
A  WOMAN'S  MEMORIAI.. 

"She  hath  done  what  she  could."— iMzr>fe  14:8. 

While  Jesus  was  at  Bethany,  the  guest  of  a 
wealthy  man  named  Simon,  and  was  one  day  sit- 
ting at  meat,  Mary,  the  sister  of  Lazarus,  came 
behind  him  and  suddenly  poured  costly  ointment 
upon  his  head. 

Concerning  this  action  a  difference  of  opinion 
instantly  arose  among  the  disciples.  Complaint 
was  made  as  to  the  pecuniary  extravagance  of  her 
offering.  The  perfume  was  known  to  be  unusually 
expensive,  and  "some"  of  those  who  commented 
seemed  to  think  the  price  of  it  would  better  have 
been  devoted  to  helping  the  poor  in  that  forlorn 
village. 

Jesus,  however,  at  once  took  up  the  defence  of 
the  woman.  He  applauded  her  behavior  as  grow- 
ing out  of  her  exceeding  love.  He  even  went  so 
far  as  to  declare  that  her  name  would  be  handed 
down  with  honorable  commendation  to  all  ages  just 
for  this  affectionate  devotion. 

So  suggestive  a  discussion,  ending  with  so  ex- 
traordinary an  encomium,  cannot  fail  to  have  in  it 
some  excellent  lessons  for  us  all.  It  well  exhibits 
in  a  single  illustration  the  appropriateness,  the 
motive,  the  measure,  and  the  reward  of  Christian 
zeal. 


A  woman's  memorial.  231 

I.  We  start  out  with  a  recognition,  on  our  part, 
of  a  settled  rule  of  activity.  All  of  Christ's  friends 
are  expected  to  do  something  for  him. 

1.  Work  and  sacrifice  are  not  inconsistent  with 
even  the  highest  spirituality.  For  this  is  the  same 
Mary  whose  other  story  is  so  familiar  to  us  all. 
She  was  the  one  who  used  to  sit  at  Jesus'  feet  in  all 
the  serene  quiet  of  communion  with  her  Lord;  yet 
now  who  would  say  that  Mary  at  the  Master's  head 
might  not  be  as  fine  a  theme  for  the  artist's  pencil? 
Piety  is  practical,  and  practical  piety  is  not  the  less 
picturesque  and  attractive  because  it  has  in  such  an 
instance  become  demonstrative. 

2.  Our  Lord  always  needed  help  while  he  was 
on  the  earth.  There  were  rich  women  among  those 
whom  he  had  aided,  at  whose  generous  hands  he 
received  money.  And  his  cause  needs  help  now. 
It  may  seem  very  sw^eet  to  sit  still  and  sing  and 
pray,  *'Thy  kingdom  come.  Thy  w411  be  done." 
But  how  long  is  it  going  to  be  before  the  kingdom 
will  come  unless  more  of  the  Lord's  will  is  done  on 
the  earth  than  some  of  his  people  are  doing? 

3.  It  is  a  mere  temptation  of  the  devil  to  assert 
that  one's  work  for  Jesus  Christ  is  vitiated  by  the 
full  gladness  a  loving  soul  feels  in  it.  Some  timid 
and  self-distrustful  believers  are  stumbled  by  the 
fear  that  their  sacrifices  for  our  blessed  Master  are 
meritless  because  they  enjoy  making  them.  There 
used  to  be  rehearsed  an  old  legend  of  an  aged  proph- 
etess passing  through  a  crowd  with  a  censer  of  fire 
in  one  hand  and  a  pitcher  of  water  in  the  other. 
Being  asked  why  she  carried  so  singular  a  burden, 


233 

she  replied,  "This  fire  is  to  burn  heaven  with,  and 
this  water  is  to  quench  hell  with;  so  that  men  may 
hereafter  serve  God  without  desire  for  reward  or 
fear  of  retribution."  Such  a  speech  may  appear 
becoming  for  a  mere  devotee's  utterance,  but  there 
is  no  warrant  for  anything  like  it  in  the  Bible. 
Heaven  is  oflfered  for  our  encouragement  in  zeal. 
Hell  is  often  exhibited  that  it  might  be  feared. 

IL  Next  to  this  the  story  of  the  alabaster-box 
suggests  a  lesson  concerning  the  motive  which  un- 
derlies all  true  Christian  activity. 

1.  In  the  case  of  this  woman,  we  are  told  that 
her  action  grew  out  of  her  grateful  affection  for  her 
lyord.  Kvery  gesture  shows  her  tenderness;  she 
wiped  his  very  feet  with  her  own  hair.  This  was 
what  gave  her  offering  its  supreme  value.  A  box 
of  expensive  perfume  is  worth  no  more  in  coin 
because  one  of  God's  poverty-stricken  creatures 
furnishes  it  for  the  Redeemer's  head.  Indeed, 
Christ  was  never  in  the  habit  of  estimating  and 
registering  conduct  in  that  way.  Simon's  banquet 
on  this  occasion,  we  cannot  doubt,  cost  more  than 
Mary's  ointment;  but  we  might  never  have  heard 
of  the  feast  if  the  alabaster-box  had  not  been  bro- 
ken. 

2.  Herein  lies  the  principle  wdiich  has  for  all 
ages  the  widest  application.  It  is  not  so  much 
what  we  do  for  our  Saviour,  nor  the  way  in  which 
we  do  it,  as  it  is  the  feeling  which  prompts  us  in 
the  doing  of  anything,  that  receives  his  welcome. 
It  is  the  affection  pervading  the  zeal  which  renders 
the   ^eal  precious.      There  will   be  found   a  fresh 


A  woman's  memorial. 


^Z2> 


illustration  in  the  other  instance  recorded  of  a 
woman  who  did  for  Jesns  an  act  quite  similar  to 
this,  and  in  her  turn  received  extraordinary  ap- 
proval. "Wherefore  I  say  unto  thee,  Her  sins, 
which  are  many,  are  forgiven;  for  she  loved  much: 
but  to  whom  little  is  forgiven,  the  same  loveth 
little. '» 

3.  It  may  as  well  be  expected  that  the  kindness 
which  proceeds  from  pure  love  will  sometimes  meet 
with  misconstruction.     Those  who  look  upon  a  zeal 
far  beyond  their  own  in  disinterested  affection  will 
frequently  be  overheard  to  pass  uncharitable  mis- 
judgments  upon  it.     "And  there  were  some  that 
had  indignation  within  themselves,  and  said.  Why 
was  this  waste  of  the  ointment  made  ?    For  it  might 
have  been  sold  for  more  than  three  hundred  pence 
and  have  been  given  to  the  poor.     And  they  mur- 
mured against  her.'*     Now  in  this  is  found  a  very 
interesting  comment    upon   what    is    called    "the 
speech  of  people."     For  on  comparing  one  gospel 
with  another  we  discover  that  the  "some"  were 
but  one  person,  and  that  it  was  only  Judas  Iscariot 
after  all,  on  this  occasion,  who  took  the  lead  in 
assigning  wrong  motives  to  the  woman,  and  he  did 
not  so  much  care  for  the  poor  as  he  did  for  his  own 
bag  of  treasure.     This  churlishness  and  jealousy 
furnishes  a  new  illustration  of  weak  human  nature. 
We  ought  not  to  regard  it.     No  matter  how  much 
our  humble  endeavors  to  honor  our  Lord  Jesus  may 
be  derided,  it  will  be  helpful  to  remember  they  are 
fully  appreciated  by  him. 

4.   This  is  the  principle  which  uplifts  and  enno- 


234 

bles  even  commonplace  zeal.  When  true,  honest 
love  is  the  motive,  do  we  not  all  agree  that  it  is 
slight  ministrations  more  than  great  conspicuous 
efforts  which  touch  the  heart  of  one  who  receives 
them  ?  The  more'  unnoticed  to  every  eye  except 
ours,  the  more  dear  are  the  glances  of  tenderness  we 
receive.  It  is  the  delicacy,  not  the  bulk,  of  the 
kindness  which  constitutes  its  charm.  Just  to  sur- 
prise one  of  our  devoted  friends  in  an  unobtrusive 
act  of  generosity  gives  us  more  heartfelt  gratifica- 
tion than  to  get  from  his  hand  in  public  an  expected 
gift  of  even  a  hundred-fold  cost. 

5.  Moreover,  it  is  just  this  motive  which,  above 
all  others,  can  render  a  soul  alert  in  discovering  the 
delicate  and  right  thing  to  do.  Some  persons  seem 
to  have  an  instinct  in  choosing  gifts,  in  speaking  a 
word  of  welcome  or  of  praise;  they  always  appear 
graceful  in  their  attentions  and  wonderfully  alert  in 
finding  out  the  precise  act  to  evidence  their  affec- 
tionate feeling.  Some  kind  of  strange  spiritual 
penetration  led  this  woman  to  come  in  at  the  op- 
portune instant  and  do  an  act  which  would  have 
been  pronounced  bold  by  any  one  else.  Our  divine 
Lord  caught  the  significance  of  her  peculiar  gift: 
*^  She  hath  done  what  she  could:  she  is  come  afore- 
hand  to  anoint  my  body  for  the  burying.''  Her 
heart  had  interpreted  to  her  his  present  crisis.  It 
was  this  foresight  of  his  coming  death  that  consti- 
tuted the  unction  a  sacrament,  so  that  Jesus  could 
accept  it  without  suspicion  or  shame.  Alford  on 
this  passage  says,  "I  can  hardly  think  that  our 
Lord  would  have  said  this  unless  there  had  been  in 


A  woman's  memorial.  235 

Mary's  mind  a  distinct  reference  to  his  burial  in 
doing  the  act;  all  the  company  surely  knew  well 
that  his  death  by  crucifixion  was  near  at  hand.  Can 
we  suppose  one  who  so  closely  observed  his  words 
as  Mary  not  to  have  been  possessed  with  the  thought 
of  that  which  was  about  to  happen  ?"  This  may  be 
true;  but  we  cannot  help  thinking  that  the  woman 
knew,  out  of  her  great  love,  what  was  appropriate 
under  the  circumstances.  Genuine  affection  is  edu- 
cating and  refining;  and  many  a  Christian,  who  a 
little  while  before  wondered  how  he  might  be  use- 
ful ever  at  all,  finds  himself  suddenly  leading  the 
rest- in  his  sweet,  gentle  achievements. 

III.  In  the  next  place,  there  is  a  lesson  in  this 
story  concerning  the  measure  of  Christian  zeal.  It 
is  contained  in  the  simple  text  chosen  for  our  pres- 
ent comment:   "  She  hath  done  what  she  could." 

I.  It  would  not  be  fair  to  underrate  what  this 
woman  did  do  under  the  circumstances.  There  was 
something  that  seemed  a  little  like  extravagance  in 
her  lavish  expenditure.  For  the  money  value  of 
her  offering  was,  according  to  the  estimate  pro- 
nounced upon  it  there  on  the  spot  by  those  who 
knew,  not  far  from  fifty  dollars.  We  are  to  take 
into  account  her  previous  history  and  characteris- 
tics. Of  this  alabaster-box  it  needs  to  be  remarked 
that  it  might  more  properly  have  been  called  a 
phial  or  a  jar.  It  was  one  of  those  small  vessels, 
rare,  luxurious,  and  costly,  wont  in  such  days  to  be 
sought  and  cherished  by  silly  and  vain  girls,  con- 
taining curiously  perfumed  cosmetics  used  by  Ori- 
entals for   meretricious   toilets.      She  showed   not 


236  STUDIES    IN   mark's  GOSPEL. 

only  lier  regard  for  Jesus,  who  had  given  her  a  new 
heart,  by  bringing  to  him  the  adornment  she  had 
once  coveted  for  herself,  but  she  also  evidenced  her 
willingness  and  zeal  in  surrendering  what  was  sim- 
ply worldly  for  her  own  use,  and  perhaps  wicked 
in  its  employment  as  an  allurement  to  wrong. 

2.  The  main  suggestion,  however,  is  full  of  com- 
fort, for  it  affords  us  the  opportunity  of  settling  for 
once  and  for  ever  the  principle  that  it  is  the  willing 
heart  which  Christ  accepts.  The  language  em- 
ployed in  the  approval  is  more  significant  than  at 
first  one  would  think.  In  the  original  word  and 
idiom  there  is  the  implication  of  a  far-reaching-  ex- 
haustiveness  in  her  generosity;  literally  rendered  it 
would  read,  ' '  She  hath  done  what  she  hath. '  * 
That  is  to  say,  she  did  as  much  as  her  entire  abil- 
ity permitted;  she  used  all  she  possessed — all  the 
wealth  she  had,  all  the  education  she  had,  all  the 
ingenuity  she  had,  all  the  opportunity  she  had,  all 
the  penetration  she  had,  all  the  courage  she  had — 
all  the  possibilities  she  had  of  any  sort.  This  wo- 
man was  commended  because  she  did  everything 
within  her  power  to  do  in  order  to  manifest  her 
loyal  affection  for  Jesus  her  Master.  The  comfort 
in  such  an  announcement  is  easy  to  attain.  Not 
every  one  is  gifted  with  the  talents  of  all  those  we 
long  to  imitate.  But  we  ought  to  be  satisfied  when 
we  feel  that  Jesus  is  saying  of  us  that  we  are  doing 
what  we  can.  Most  pathetic  are  those  quiet  com- 
ments often  made  at  one  of  our  frequent  funerals: 
"She  was  not  a  genius,  but  she  kept  up  a  noble 
i^eal  of  thoughtful  sagacity;  she  was  not  wealthy, 


A   WOMAN'S   MEMORIAI,.  2V] 

but  she  gave  always  what  cost  her  some  sacrifice; 
she  was  not  cons23icuous,  but  there  are  poor  people 
who  will  miss  her  much  when  the  winter  comes: 
she  did  what  she  could."  There  is  great  help  in 
remembering  that  this  was  in  substance  what  the 
Saviour  said  concerning  this  forlorn  woman. 

^  3.   Still  it  would  not  be  fair  to  dismiss  the  record 
without  one  caution.     This  whole  incident  will  be 
most  shamefully  abused  and  ruinously  perverted  if 
it  be  turned  away  from  its  legitimate  employment, 
and  in  that  way  forced  to  favor  sinful  ease  or  listless 
indulgence.      It  relaxes  nothing;  really,  it  bids  us 
do  more  and  more.     Shifting  the  claim  from  mere 
obligation  of  duty,  and  passing  it  over  to  afFection- 
ateness  of  inexhaustible  love  for  God  and  man,  only 
makes   the   demand  sharper.      Before  any  modern 
Christian  can  solace  his  soul  with  saying,  "I  have 
actually  done  what  I  could,"  he  must  make  him- 
self sure  that  all  has  been  done  that  could  be  done. 
The  legend  upon  the  sepulchre  of  Adam  Clarke  is 
a  burning  candle  with  the  motto,  ''I  am  consumed 
away  for  another," 

4.  Hence  the  counsel  leads  us  straight  to  self- 
examination.  It  is  possible  there  may  be  as  much 
in  a  widow's  mite  as  in  a  millionaire's  fortune;  that 
comes  out  in  the  end  of  the  twelfth  chapter,  which 
we  do  well  to  recall.  Before  either  the  widow  or 
the  rich  man  is  permitted  to  cry  out,  ''I  have  done 
what  I  could,"  the  widow  must  put  in  her  mite  and 
the  rich  man  must  put  in  the  proper  proportion  of 
his  fortune.  It  is  high  time  that  believers  began 
to  measure  their  benefactions  by  the  benefits  they 


238  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPEI.. 

receive.  It  might  be  a  salutary  exercise  always  to 
drop  our  benevolent  contributions  in  the  plate  with 
the  same  hand  which  we  use  when  we  take  the 
bread  and  wine  at  the  sacrament  of  Communion. 

IV.  The  final  lesson  of  this  story  is  concerning 
the  reward  of  Christian  zeal.  Higher  encomium 
was  never  pronounced  than  that  which  this  woman 
received  from  the  Master:  "Verily  I  say  unto  you, 
Wheresoever  this  gospel  shall  be  preached  through- 
out the  whole  world,  this  also  that  she  hath  done 
shall  be  spoken  of  for  a  memorial  of  her.'* 

1.  It  was  Jesus  that  gave  the  approval.  Set 
that  over  against  the  fault-finding  of  Judas  !  If  we 
do  our  duty,  we  have  a  right  to  appeal  away  from 
anybody  who  carps.  When  Christ  justifies,  who  is 
he  that  condemns?  Some  of  us  have  read  of  the 
ancient  classic  orator  who,  having  no  favor  in  the 
theatre,  went  into  the  temple  and  gestured  before 
the  statues  of  the  gods;  he  said  they  better  under- 
stood him.  Thus  may  maligned  believers  retire 
from  the  world  that  misjudges  them  and  comfort 
themselves  with  Jesus'  recognition. 

2.  Jesus  said  this  woman  should  be  remembered 
very  widely — wherever  the  gospel  should  go.  Men 
know  what  is  good  and  fine  when  they  see  it,  and 
they  stand  ready  to  commend  it.  Even  I^ord  Byron 
had  wit  enough  to  see  that 

"The  drying  up  a  single  tear  has  more 
Of  honest  fame  than  shedding  seas  of  gore." 

Some  of  the  grandest  lives  in  history  have  had  only 
little  show  to  make.     Care-burdened  women,  inva- 


A   WOMAN'S    MEMORIAI..  239 

lids  on  couches,  ill-clad  and  ill-fed  sons  of  toil, 
maid-servauts,  man-servants,  apprentices,  and  hire- 
lings with  few  unoccupied  hours,  timid  hearts, 
uneducated  minds,  sailors  kept  on  ships,  soldiers 
held  in  garrison — these,  with  only  a  poor  chance, 
have  done  such  service  that  the  world  remembers 
them  with  its  widest  renown. 

3.  It  was  just  this  parable  of  Jesus'  which  be- 
came Mary's  memorial.  A  word  sometimes  lasts 
longer  than  a  marble  slab.  We  must  learn  to  be 
content  with  the  approval  of  God  and  our  own  con- 
sciences. Nothing  will  ever  be  forgotten  that  is 
worth  a  record  in  God's  book.  Those  who  die  in 
the  Lord  will  find  their  works  follow  them,  and  the 
worthy  fame  remains  behind:  "  The  memory  of  the 
just  is  blessed,  but  the  name  of  the  wicked  shall 
rot."  Only  we  are  to  recollect  that  love  alone  gives 
character  and  value  to  all  zeal.  That  was  a  most 
suggestive  remark  of  old  Thomas  h.  Kempis:  "He 
doeth  much  who  loveth  much,  and  he  also  doeth 
much  who  doeth  well." 


240  STUDIES  IN    mark's  GOSPEI.. 

XXIIL 
SACRAMENTS  IN  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT. 

"And  as  they  did  eat  Jesus  took  bread,  and  blessed  and 
brake  it,  and  gave  it  to  them,  and  said,  take,  eat:  this 
IS  MY  BODY." — Mark  14:22. 

In  order  that  there  should  be  no  occasion  for  the 
reproach  to  be  raised  against  him,  our  Lord  chose 
the  time,  occasion,  and  general  ceremonies  of  the 
Passover  for  the  basis  of  the  new  institution  of  a  fes- 
tival for  use  in  the  New  Testament  church.  This 
is  the  reason  why  the  date  is  affixed  as  "the  first 
day  of  unleavened  bread."  And  this  is  the  expla- 
nation of  the  apostle's  announcement,  "  Christ,  our 
Passover,  is  sacrificed  for  us."  The  Saviour  chose 
this  form  of  procedure  that  he  might  show  the 
identity  of  the  two  dispensations  at  once. 

The  next  step  in  the  story  of  Mark,  as  he  pic- 
tures the  preparation  made,  relates  the  incident  of 
the  disciples'  application  to  a  Jerusalem  stranger  for 
hospitality.  The  feast  itself  had  to  be  observed  in 
the  city;  but  Jesus  found  his  entertainment  during 
most  of  this  final  week  among  the  poor  friends  he 
had  in  a  neighboring  village.  Bethany  and  Betli- 
phage  are  mentioned  in  the  Talmud  with  emphatic 
honor,  because  in  their  deepest  poverty  they  were 
celebrated  for  the  hospitality  they  showed  to  the 
homeless  pilgrims.  But  our  Lord  seems  to  have 
wished  to  be  with  his  disciples  only,  on  this  occa- 


SACRAMENTS    IN   THE;    NEW  TESTAMENT.     241 

sion,  rather  than  with  generous  friends  outside  of 
the  walls.  Who  this  "  goodnmn  of  the  house"  was, 
from  whom  he  had  now  to  ask  the  somewhat  exten- 
sive accommodations  for  his  company  of  thirteen 
persons,  we  are  not  informed. 

But  here  we  may  learn  how  surely  the  Lord 
Jesus  knows  who  loves  him  and  foresees  who  will 
receive  him.  The  disciples  could  not  be  of  any 
help  in  finding  a  place  by  themselves;  but  they  had 
lately  learned  that  their  divine  Master  had  a  way  of 
recognising  those  with  whom  he  understood  he 
would  be  welcome  to  make  his  abode. 

We  may  notice  also  the  quaint  form  of  instruc- 
tion employed  here ;  for  it  well  illustrates  two 
things  at  once:  the  foreknowledge  of  Jesus  in  some 
things,  and  the  willingness  of  his  perhaps  secret  fol- 
lowers. Suppose  it  had  happened  that  in  all  this 
afternoon  no  man  "bearing  a  pitcher  of  water" 
had  appeared,  what  would  the  disciples  have  con- 
cluded? Or  suppose  they  had  found  such  a  man, 
bat  that  he  had  replied  he  had  no  guest-chamber? 
They  must  have  noted  the  risk,  and  yet  we  see  no 
sign  of  any  hesitation  in  their  obedience.  They 
had  already  been  put  to  a  somewhat  similar  test 
once  before,  when  he  was  going  to  ride  in  tri- 
umph into  Jerusalem  on  a  beast  they  were  sent  to 
procure. 

A  choice  lesson  for  all  Christians  might  be 
learned  from  the  unquestioning  acquiescence  of 
these  men.  They  could  not  know  just  where  to  go 
in  their  search  for  a  room;  but  they  did  know 
enough  to  start  in  their  search  for  the  man  with  a 

SI  111. lea  In  MaiU's  OoBi.el.  J  J 


242 

pitcher.  They  obeyed  as  far  as  they  understood, 
and  so  were  taught  step  by  step.  This  was  always 
the  rule  of  Christ:  obey  first,  and  find  out  after- 
wards: "Take  my  yoke  upon  you  and  learn  of 
me."  The  taking  of  the  yoke  was  put  before  the 
learning  about  the  duty;  then  a  willing  spirit  would 
speedily  find  the  path  opening  just  ahead.  No  mat- 
ter how  mysterious  divine  providences  are  to  human 
eyes,  revelations  of  divine  purpose  always  come  in 
the  line  of  a  filial  obedience.  If  a  man  will  only 
begin  to  do  God's  will  as  far  on  as  he  perceives 
what  it  is,  he  will  soon  know  all  he  needs  to  know 
of  the  different  doctrines  that  lie  before  him,  al- 
though yet  undisclosed. 

But  we  leave  all  this  now;  for  our  better  con- 
cern is  with  the  institution  which  was  at  that  time 
given  to  believers  for  all  the  ages. 

The  old  wojd  "sacrament"  is  not  a  felicitous 
one  at  the  best;  it  comes  almost  directly  from  the 
Latin  language,  and  was  employed  by  the  Roman 
soldiers  to  describe  their  martial  oath  ;  that  is  to 
say,  the  engagement  in  which  they  swore  to  be 
faithful  to  their  leader  and  loyal  to  their  Govern- 
ment. As  now  used  by  the  churches  it  has  much 
the  same  meaning,  although  it  has  passed  from  a 
secular  to  a  spiritual  application.  It  is  deemed  to  be 
the  symbolic  act  by  which  is  shown  our  allegiance 
to  an  unseen  commander,  Jesus,  the  Captain  of  our 
salvation. 

I.  Let  us  seek  a  few  suggestions  concerning 
sacraments  in  general ;  then  we  can  notice  that 
which  is  specially  under  our  present  study  in  thQ 


SACRAMKNTS   IN   THE   NEW  TESTAMENT.     243 

chapter.  Only  two  are  recognized  now,  Baptism 
and  Communion. 

I.  Concerning  these  I  remark,  first,  that  they  do 
not  receive  any  authority  nor  derive  any  efficacy 
nor  confer  any  benefits  whatever  from  their  inhe- 
rent or  intrinsic  force  as  religious  ceremonies. 

In  Baptism  the  element  is  water,  and  it  is  noth- 
ing more  nor  less  than  water.  It  would  be  no 
better  for  having  come  from  the  Jordan,  no  holier 
for  having  been  prayed  over  by  a  -priest  in  a  dead 
lauQ^uao^e. 

In  the  Communion  the  elements  are  bread  and 
wine.  The  bread  our  Lord  took  and  brake  was 
just  the  common  bread  set  before  him  at  the  usual 
Passover  feast.  Our  bread  is  no  worse  because  it 
has  been  raised  or  leavened,  nor  would  it  be  any 
more  sacred  if  it  had  been  fashioned  in  the  form  of 
a  thin  wafer.  The  wine  which  our  Lord  poured 
out,  giving  thanks,  was  what  he  found  on  the  table. 
Ours  is  no  more  strengthening  because  it  may  be 
stronger,  nor  would  it  be  spoiled  by  being  absolutely 
fresh  from  the  grapes.  What  we  want  is  plain 
bread  and  wine. 

Nor  are  the  effects  mystic  or  miraculous.  Bap- 
tism does  not  wash  away  sin  really,  though  it  signi- 
fies washing.  The  Lord's  Supper  never  makes  us 
actually  feed  upon  Christ,  though  it  symbolizes  the 
satisfaction  of  a  hungry  soul.  In  themselves  the 
ordinances  are  simply  signs. 

Does  any  one  ask  how  we  know  this?  The  an- 
swer is  easily  brought  from  the  history.  Simon 
Magus  was  surely  baptized;  yet  the  apostle  in  so 


244  STUDIES  IN  mark's  GOSPEL. 

many  words  told  him  he  was  still  *'in  the  gall  of 
bitterness  and  the  bonds  of  iniquity."  There  is 
every  reason  to  believe  that  those  apostates,  Her- 
mogenes,  Philetus,  and  Hymenseus,  were  often  at 
"the  breaking  of  bread,"  and  yet  Paul  tells  us  he 
had  "delivered  them  to  Satan,  that  they  might 
learn  not  to  blaspheme."  Ordinances  did  them  no 
good. 

In  truth,  these  are  only  forms.  They  do  not 
cause  or  effect  regeneration;  they  are  only  the 
symbols  of  it.  They  are  to  believers  in  the  New 
Testament  what  the  rainbow  is  in  the  Old.  That 
beautiful  arch  in  the  heavens  reminds  of  the  past 
and  brings  promise  for  the  future;  but  in  itself  it  is 
nothing  more  than  the  refraction  and  reflection  of 
light  in  the  raindrops.  It  never  had  any  power  to 
prevent  a  deluge  in  these  centuries  long  gone,  al- 
though it  is  set  to  show  that  God  intends  to  prevent 
one  from  coming  again;  it  does  not  make  the  Al- 
mighty merciful,  but  it  shows  he  is  so.  In  like 
manner  the  ordinances  do  not  effectually  make  us 
friends  of  Jesus  Christ  nor  make  him  ours  ;  but 
they  shine  out  as  signs  to  show  we  are  reconciled 
and  are  at  one  with  each  other.  Rightly  used,  such 
symbols  give  comfort,  but  not  inherently. 

2.  So  I  remark  again  that  these  sacraments  do 
not  take  their  authority  or  efflcacy  from  any  con- 
nection with  the  administrator. 

As  they  are  now  employed  in  all  branches  of  the 
church,  no  truly  educated  believer  desires  to  receive 
them  at  the  hands  of  any  one  save  those  who  are  set 
apart  in  an  orderly  way  to  the  ministry.     But  if  the 


SACRAMENTS   IN   THE   NEW  TESTAMENT.     245 

ordained  officer  of  the  congregation  should  after- 
wards prove  to  be  only  a  hypocrite  and  a  sinner, 
such  ordinances  themselves  would  not  thereby  be 
invalidated.  His  baptism  would  not  have  to  be  re- 
peated, nor  would  private  Christians  be  obnoxious 
to  censure  for  having  partaken  of  wine  poured  by 
his  hand,  or  bread  broken,  at  the  celebration  of  the 
Supper. 

The  reasoning  which  leads  to  this  conclusion  is 
all  the  more  cogent  because  it  is  so  simple.  If  the 
minister's  moral  qualities  come  into  our  estimate  of 
the  validity  of  his  official  work,  where  shall  an 
anxious  scrutiny  be  permitted  to  rest?  How  can 
we  ever  know  certainly  that  we  are  safe?  Who 
knows  the  real  character  of  any  human  being?  A 
man  must  have  some  measure  of  error  in  him  as 
long  as  he  is  mortal  and  unsanctified;  and  where  is 
toleration  of  imperfection  to  end?  We  must  re- 
member that  these  ordinances  are  seals;  and  if  the 
great  seal  of  the  realm  be  applied  to  any  parchment 
of  our  rights  by  a  commissioned  representative  of 
the  crown,  it  w^ill  stand,  no  matter  if  the  wicked 
creature  shall  afterwards  be  thrown  into  a  dungeon 
for  his  crimes, 

3.  For,  let  me  remark  again,  these  sacraments 
derive  all  the  efficacy  and  authority  they  possess 
from  their  institution  by  Christ. 

"For  I  have  received  of  the  Lord  that  which 
also  I  delivered  unto  you;"  these  are  the  words  of 
the  inspired  apostle  on  this  head.  No  more  proof 
needs  to  be  adduced.  Tradition  has  handed  them 
down  to  us,  that  is  true;   but  all  the  tradition  we 


246  STUDIES   IN    MARK'S   GOSPEL. 

acknowledge  took  them  from  only  one  hand,  that  of 
our  divine  Lord.  It  is  well  known  that  the  so- 
called  Catholic  Church  numbers  five  more  sacra- 
ments than  the  Protestant  to  which  we  belong. 
But  Jesus  Christ  gave  to  believers  only  two;  any 
beyond  these  have  a  very  short  and  low  pedigree. 
He  instituted  Baptism,  and  he  turned  the  Passover 
into  the  Supper  which  bears  his  own  name. 

Furthermore,  in  order  to  give  value  to  these 
ordinances  he  sanctioned  them  by  the  gift  of  the 
Holy  Ghost  to  pervade  and  enliven  them.  Through 
the  presence  of  this  Comforter,  the  Third  Person  of 
this  Adorable  Trinity,  *'the  benefits  of  the  new 
covenant  are  represented,  sealed,  and  applied  to  be- 
lievers."    By  this  Spirit  they  are  made  efficacious. 

II.  We  come  now,  leaving  such  general  con- 
siderations, to  examine  more  particularly  the  second 
one  of  the  sacraments,  the  institution  of  which 
forms  the  theme  to  be  taught  and  studied  to-day. 
The  Communion  ordinance,  like  the  Passover,  was 
meant  to  be  "a  memorial  for  all  generations."  It 
is  an  emblematic  festival,  the  object  of  which  is  to 
awake  emotion,  to  stimulate  hope  and  love,  by  re- 
minding us  of  the  death  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
by  which  he  made  atonement  for  our  sins.  It  ad- 
dresses the  imagination,  the  intellect,  and  the  heart, 
all  at  once. 

I.  As  addressed  to  the  imagination,  it  is  an 
exhibition  and  furnishes  a  picture.  We  see  before 
us  bread  and  wine;  the  one  is  broken  and  the  other 
poured  out;  the  one  is  eaten  and  the  other  is  drank. 
We  thus   "show  the  Lord's  death  till  he  come." 


SACRAMENTS    IN   TIIK  NKW   TESTAMENT.      247 

And  we  partake  of  these  elements  to  prove  we 
appropriate  the  benefits  of  what  the  Saviour  did 
in  our  behalf. 

Hence  we  understand  at  once  what  is  the  projDer 
meditation  for  an  earnest  Christian  at  the  table. 
Vividly  conceiving  the  events  of  this  Redeemer's 
suffering,  we  try  to  keep  saying  to  ourselves,  ''All 
this  is  for  me;  bread  for  me,  wine  for  me;  so  the 
life  is  for  me  and  the  covenant  is  for  me;  and  I 
take  it  now  with  a  reverent  and  joyous  faith." 

2.  As  addressed  to  the  intellect  next,  this  festival 
is  an  argument  and  offers  a  powerful  proof.  Few 
men  are  there  who  can  honestly  say  they  have  al- 
ways been  equally  undisturbed  by  doubts.  It  is 
difficult  to  walk  by  faith  without  sight.  Sometimes 
the  temptations  of  Satan  are  so  severe  that  the 
mind  becomes  dull  and  half  bewildered.  The 
whole  fabric  of  Christianity  seems  to  be  shaking 
and  trembling,  as  the  temple  did  in  Isaiah's  vision, 
when  even  "  the  posts  of  the  door  moved,  and  the 
house  was  filled  with  smoke.'*  What  if  everything 
should  prove  to  have  been  a  fable?  What  if  Jesus 
Christ  never  lived  after  all  ? 

Just  there  this  feast  comes  in  as  a  commonplace 
fact.  For  these  hundreds  of  years  it  has  been  cele- 
brated in  the  same  way  and  with  the  same  purpose. 
Following  it  up  along  the  lines  of  history,  we  come 
directly  to  the  story  of  our  Lord's  crucifixion.  If 
Jesus  lived,  labored,  preached,  wrought  miracles, 
died  on  the  cross,  as  this  ceremony  is  sure  to  declare 
wherever  one  finds  it,  then  Christianity  is  true. 
The  entire  feast  is  traced  to  the  apostles,  and  they 


243  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

tell  us  tliey  received  it  from  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
as  they  delivered  it  unto  us.  If  now  we  grow  con- 
fused, we  at  once  ask  the  question,  What  started 
this  ceremony  all  over  the  world  through  the  ages? 
Where  did  the  Lord's  Supper  come  from?  Thus 
the  argument  becomes  cogent  all  the  more  because 
of  its  availableness  with  plain  people.  If  there 
never  was  any  Declaration  of  Independence,  where 
did  the  celebration  of  the  Fourth  of  July  have  its 
beginning?  If  there  never  was  a  Guy  Fawkes  con- 
spiracy, how  did  children  first  learn  to  talk  about 
the  **guys"  of  the  "fifth  of  November"?  Just  so 
we  reason,  if  Jesus  was  never  crucified,  who  in- 
vented Communion? 

3.  Finally,  as  addressed  to  the  heart,  this  ordi- 
nance is  a  stimulus  and  incites  us  to  zeal.  It 
arouses  the  Christian's  affectionate  nature,  it  kin- 
dles his  fervors,  it  inflames  his  emotion.  This  it 
does  in  two  ways:  by  the  experience  it  offers  and 
the  prospect  it  shows. 

The  experience  it  offers  is  supremely  spiritual. 
We  come  into  a  Prince's  banqueting-house,  and  his 
banner  over  us  is  love»  We  think  a  great  deal;  we 
say  nothing.  Our  covenant  is  like  that  of  a  bride 
made  at  the  marriage  altar;  it  does  not  need  the 
words  of  a  pledge;  the  vow  is  to  be  found  more  in 
the  hand  that  holds  a  hand  and  is  still. 

The  prospect  this  feast  shows  is  spiritual  also. 
For  the  Supper  is  a  type  as  well  as  a  memorial ;  it 
looks  forward  as  well  as  backward.  It  seems  to 
open  the  gates  of  pearl  and  permit  us  to  gain 
glimpses  of  the  radiant  light  shining  at  the  mar- 


SACRAMENTS   IxN   THE   NEW  TESTAMENT.     249 

riage  supper  of  the  I^amb.  We  find  ourselves  in 
the  companionship  of  the  redeemed  in  heaven  as 
well  as  on  earth.  The  good  and  the  great  of  all 
ages  are  around  us  even  now.  And  Ave  think  of  the 
day  coming  soon  when  we  shall  reach  our  rest  above. 
It  is  in  the  light  of  such  considerations  as  these 
that  we  estimate  the  guilt  of  some  who  wilfully 
neglect  this  ordinance  even  at  the  moment  when 
they  claim  covenant  mercies  as  the  children  of  God. 
It  is  like  a  soldier's  refusal  to  stand  by  his  colors 
while  the  entire  army  is  taking  the  sacramental 
oath  on  the  eve  of  a  critical  battle. 

It  is  in  this  light  also  that  we  estimate  the  mis- 
take  of  some  of  God's  dear  children  who  think  they 
can  be  perfectly  safe  without  openly  confessing  their 
Lord.  Jesus  Christ  once  said,  ''Ye  are  my  friends 
if  ye  do  whatsoever  I  command  you."  If  one's 
soul  is  wholly  committed  on  the  Lord's  side,  why 
does  he  not  put  his  life  there  also?  Who  will  be 
content  as  a  bride  without  the  ceremony  of  mar- 
riage giving  the  name  and  honor? 


250  STUDIIiS   IN    mark's  GOSPEI.. 

XXIV. 

A  TRAITOR'S  KIvSS  IN  GETHSBMANB. 

"And  he  that  betrayed  Him  had  given  them  a  token,  saying, 
Whomsoever  I  shall  kiss,  that  same  is  he;  take  him,  and 
lead  him  away  safely." — Mark  14:44. 

Immediately  after  Jesus  had  concluded  the  ad- 
ministration of  what  we  now  call  the  Lord's  Sup- 
i:)er,  and  had  offered  his  intercessory  prayer  for  the 
disciples  and  the  church  at  large,  he  led  the  little 
band  that  followed  him  across  the  gully  of  the 
brook  Kidron.  Almost  at  once,  at  the  rounding 
up  of  the  hill,  he  entered  the  small  inclosure  which 
they  knew  had  become  familiar  to  him  as  a  place 
of  meditation  and  prayer  to  his  Father.  He  soon 
lapsed  into  silence  and  waited  for  the  scenes  of  his 
betrayal  to  be  moved  on  at  the  will  that  was  higher 
than  his  own.  *' And  they  came  to  a  place  which 
was  named  Gethsemane:  and  he  saith  to' his  dis- 
ciples, Sit  ye  here  while  I  shall  pray." 

It  is  a  striking  fact  that  so  many  of  the  localities 
in  which  the  incidents  of  our  Saviour's  life  are 
commemorated  had  names  of  such  deep  significance, 
by  which  they  are  known  even  now.  There  was 
Bethlehem,  for  the  earliest  example;  it  means 
*' house  of  bread;"  and  there  he  was  born  who 
said,  I  am  "the  true  bread  from  heaven."  Then 
there  was  Nazareth,  the  word  meaning  the  "town 
of  branches;"  and  in  this  village  he  was  reared  of 


A  traitor's  kiss  in  gethsemane.       251 

whom  the  prophet  had  declared:  *' And  there  shall 
come  forth  a  rod  out  of  the  stem  of  Jesse,  and  a 
branch  shall  (^vow  out  of  his  roots."  The  name 
Gethsemane  means  "an oil  press;"  and  here  it  was 
that  Jesus  found  the  "press"  he  was  to  tread 
alone  in  his  conflict  at  last. 

I.  Very  mute  is  the  witness  that  this  old  world 
bears  of  its  interest  in  the  gospel  of  redemption. 
"For  we  know  that  the  whole  creation  groaneth 
and  travaileth  in  pain  together  until  now." 

Not  many  years  ago,  on  the  occasion  of  our  first 
visit  to  Jerusalem,  a  company  of  us — American 
tourists  all — planned  to  spend  a  few  hours  of  the 
Ivord's  day  in  a  very  familiar  religious  service 
inside  of  the  traditional  place  which  the  Latins 
have  fenced  about  as  being  upon  the  exact  site  of 
the  Garden  of  Gethsemane.  It  is  perhaps  sixty 
steps  square,  as  one  would  pace  it,  surrounded  by 
a  high  wdiite  wall  on  every  side,  pierced  for  an  iron 
door.  An  old  monk  keeps  it,  and  generally  a 
stranger  finds  no  difficulty  in  obtaining  access  to  it 
at  any  time. 

At  four  o'clock  we  quietly  took  our  way  out  as 
usual  by  St.  Stephen's  Gate,  following  the  steep 
path  down  across  the  stone  bridge,  over  the  dry 
gully  where  perhaps  once  was  the  little  Kidron. 
We  entered  the  inclosure  and  filed  alonof  throueh 
some  straight  paths  separated  by  slender  picket 
fences,  imtil  quite  in  the  back  part  w^e  came  to 
some  long  benches  of  stone  under  the  shadow  of 
the  wall  nearest  the  city. 

Upon  and  before  these  we  sat,  a  goodly  gath- 


253  STUDIES   IN   MARK'S  GOSPEL. 

ering  of  twenty  souls.  In  simple-hearted  respect 
for  each  other,  we  preserved  a  decorous  silence 
while  we  read  for  ourselves  the  story  of  Jesus' 
agony. 

Before  a  great  while  the  aged  guide  came 
towards  us,  calling  attention  to  the  fact  that  a 
stone  pavement,  made  of  large  rough  slabs,  had 
been  laid  upon  the  exact  track  which  the  traitor 
Judas  took  as  he  advanced  to  salute  his  Master 
with  his  hypocritical  kiss.  This  flagged  way  was 
upon  the  outside  of  the  garden  wall,  crossing  one 
end  of  it  nearly  the  entire  distance.  It  was  dis- 
tinguished in  its  infamy,  not  only  by  this  exclusion 
from  the  sacred  precinct,  but  by  the  name  the 
monks  had  given  it — the  teira  damitata^  or  the 
**  accursed  spot"  of  the  betrayal. 

2.  It  is  always  a  fine  compliment  to  any  man's 
likeness  to  Jesus  when  his  enemies  admit  that  the 
surest  place  in  which  to  find  him,  even  for  his  ar- 
rest, is  that  where  he  is  habituated  to  go  for  his 
prayers.  ''And  Judas  also,  which  betrayed  him, 
knew  the  place:  for  Jesus  ofttimes  resorted  thither 
with  his  disciples.  Judas  then,  having  received  a 
band  of  men  and  officers  from  the  chief  priests  and 
Pharisees,  cometh  thither  with  lanterns  and  torches 
and  weapons." 

It  grew  very  vivid  to  our  imagination  now.  We 
could  easily  seem  to  see  the  procession  of  torches 
and  lanterns  as  the  priests  and  Pharisees  and  sol- 
diers must  have  moved  along  beneath  the  olive- 
trees  under  the  full  Passbver  moon.  They  perhaps 
thought  that  he  would  hide  himself  somewhere  in 


A  traitor's  kiss  in  gethsemane.       253 

a  rock-crevice  or  a  tomb,  and  they  would  have  to 
institute  a  search.  We  found  there  now  eight  ven- 
erable olives  of  unusual  siice,  rough,  hollowed  out, 
gnarled,  very  old  indeed,  no  doubt;  but  all  they 
.  suggested  to  us  was  the  fine  grouping  such  trees 
Avould  always  have  made  for  a  retreat  in  which  to 
pray;  and  we  imagined  our  Lord  advancing  from 
among  them  as  he  confronted  the  array,  Judas  in 
the  lead:  ''And  he  that  betrayed  him  had  given 
them  a  token,  saying,  Whomsoever  I  shall  kiss, 
that  same  is  he;  take  him  and  lead  him  away 
safely.  And  as  soon  as  he  was  come,  he  goeth 
straightway  to  him,  and  saith,  Master,  Master;  and 
kissed  him." 

One  swift  moment  there  was  in  which  he  stood 
calmly  looking.  "Jesus  therefore,  knowing  all 
things  that  should  come  upon  him,  went  forth, 
and  said  unto  them.  Whom  seek  ye?  They  an- 
swered him,  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  Jesus  saith  unto 
them,  I  am  he.  And  Judas  also,  which  betrayed 
him,  stood  with  them."  In  an  instant  after,  his 
enemies  fell  backward,  cowed  and  prostrated  under 
the  simple  weight  of  his  voice.  "As  soon  then  as 
he  had  said  unto  them,  I  am  he,  they  went  back- 
ward and  fell  to  the  ground." 

There  was  doubtless,  in  this  revelation  of  him- 
self on  the  part  of  Jesus,  a  disclosure  of  his  moral 
majesty  as  a  man,  his  conscious  innocence,  his 
dauntless  courage,  his  boldness  in  an  immediate 
surrender  for  trial.  But  beyond  that  we  are  not 
ready  to  deny  that  there  was  also  a  manifestation 
of  his  divine  resources  of  power.     He  appears  to 


254 

have  meant  that  they  should  know  beyond  a  per- 
adventure  that  his  suflfering  was  voluntary,  and 
that  he  was  acting  without  any  constraint  in  laying 
down  his  life,  now  that  his  hour  had  conle.  Had 
he  willed  to  resist  the  rufEans  that  attacked  him, 
he  could  have  summoned  twelve  legions  of  angels 
for  his  defence.  Nay,  he  could  have  openly  with- 
stood them  with  the  same  omnipotence  with  which 
he  healed  an  ugly  wound  in  Malchus'  ear,  which 
Simon's  rashness  had  inflicted. 

3.  And  we  might  as  well  pause  to  put  the  ques- 
tion: If  but  a  look  of  the  Saviour  could  sweep  big- 
ots and  soldiers  to  the  dust  in  headlong  confusion, 
how  will  wicked  men  be  able  to  endure  the  sight 
of  the  same  face  when  they  shall  be  compelled  to 
see  him  whom  they  have  pierced  ? 

It  was  while  we  were  thinking  and  talking 
quite  gently  there  together  about  the  wrestle  and 
the  bloody  sweat  that  the  question  arose  whether 
it  could  be  likely  that  these  very  trees,  standing  in 
the  garden  at  present,  were  among  those  which 
stood  on  the  spot  at  that  time.  The  first  impulse 
would  be  to  answer,  No.  For  several  of  us  remem- 
bered that  Josephus  had  recorded  that  Titus,  after 
he  conquered  the  city,  issued  orders  to  his  soldiers 
to  set  the  whole  suburbs  of  Jerusalem  on  fire.  This 
was  scarcely  forty  years  after  the  ascension  of 
Christ;  by  the  same  historian  the  thoroughness  of 
the  devastation  is  announced  in  language  which 
cannot  be  misunderstood.  He  says:  *' All  the  trees 
that  grew  about  the  city  within  a  distance  of  a  hun- 
dred  furlongs  had   their  branches  hewn   off;   the 


A  traitor's  kiss  in  gethsemane.       255 

trees  being-  cut  down,  the  suburbs  were  stripped 
naked."  Still,  these  eight  monarchs  of  the  garden 
might  have  sprouted  from  the  same  roots.  Even 
melancholy  Job  had  good  notions  about  trees:  *'For 
there  is  hope  of  a  tree,  if  it  be  cut  down,  that  it  will 
sprout  again,  and  that  the  tender  branch  thereof 
will  not  cease.  Though  the  root  thereof  wax  old 
in  the  earth  and  the  stock  thereof  die  in  the 
ground,  yet  through  the  scent  of  water  it  will  bud 
and  bring  forth  boughs  like  a  plant.  But  man 
dieth  and  wasteth  away;  yea,  man  giveth  up  the 
ghost,  and  where  is  he?"  It  certainly  is  in  evidence 
that  these  olives,  surely  the  oldest-looking  that  any 
man  ever  saw,  wdth  their  dark  green  foliage  silvered 
only  where  the  slight  wind  turned  up  the  leaves, 
have  given  taxes  for  their  fruit  more  than  twelve 
hundred  years,  since  the  Saracens  took  the  city. 

But  "man  giveth  up  the  ghost,  and  where  is 
lie?"  Such  a  question  sent  us  back  thinking  of 
Judas.  Now  there  are  in  the  gospel  narrative  some 
very  singular  forms  of  expression  concerning  the 
ignorance  of  the  other  disciples  as  to  this  man's 
treachery.  They  seem  never  to  understand  Jesus 
when  he  gives  warning  about  the  expected  be- 
trayal. It  has  to  be  explained  afterwards,  when 
they  come  to  think  of  what  he  said  so  clearly,  and 
yet  they  did  not  have  a  suspicion.  When  Judas 
arose  from  the  table  and  went  out,  John  says  they 
concluded  Jesus  had  whispered  a  word  to  him  about 
something  needed  for  the  feast,  and  the  man  had 
gone  after  it.  And  it  is  likely  that  not  until  these 
disciples  saw  the  ruined  creature  standing  there  did 


256  STUDIES   IN   MARK'S   GOSPEL. 

they  suspect  his  awful  sin.  ^' And  Judas  .  .  .  stood 
with  them."  This  was  the  announcement  of  his 
desperate  crime.  When  that  man,  standing  there 
now  in  the  white  moonlight,  should  go  away,  out 
of  the  circle  of  his  old  associations  into  his  new, 
they  felt  that  he  was  for  ever  lost  and  doomed,  even 
before  he  was  dead.  Perhaps  no  one  of  them  ever 
saw  a  real  reprobate  before;  they  all  saw  one  now. 
So  when  inspiration  raises  the  question,  ^'Man 
giveth  up  the  ghost,  and  where  is  he?"  inspiration 
also  answers  concerning  this  one,  "Judas  by  trans- 
gression fell,  that  he  might  go  to  his  own  place." 

4.  Alas!  how  awful  must  the  future  *' place"  of 
any  one  be  when  a  pitiful  Saviour  has  to  say  of 
him  it  were  better  not  to  be  than  to  be  where  he 
is! — '^  It  had  been  good  for  that  man  if  he  had  not 
been  born." 

I  am  sure  no  one  of  us  who  were  present  that 
day  is  ever  to  forget  the  hour  we  spent  in  Geth- 
semane.  We  soon  started  the  precious  old  hymn 
"Alas!  and  did  my  Saviour  bleed?"  to  the  tune 
"Avon,"  and  sang  the  verses  through  to  the  end, 
though  many  a  voice  faltered  in  some  notes.  It 
seemed  just  like  a  Communion  season,  without 
bread  or  wine.  Then  we  closed  the  meeting  with 
the  hymn  "  Did  Christ  o'er  sinners  weep?'* 

5.  That  Christian  who  would  live  closest  to 
Christ  must  earliest  enter  into  the  sufferings  of 
Christ,  before  he  can  hope  to  receive  his  share  in 
the  glory  that  shall  follow.  Gethsemane  is  the 
garden  to  come  on  in  order  immediately  next  to 
Eden;   the  garden  of  the  burial  is  third,  and  then 


A  TRAITOR'S   KISS   IN   GKTHSEMANE.  257 

Paradise  opens  its  gates  as  the  garden  of  the 
Lord. 

The  old  monk  leaned  over  the  fence,  attentively 
regarding  us  the  while.  I  fancied  there  was  some- 
thing gentler  than  usual  in  his  manner  towards  us 
as  he  gave  us  some  flowers  on  the  way  out.  He 
permitted  us  to  pick  with  our  own  hands  some  few 
leaves  from  the  aged  trees;  and  he  gave  me  a  fra- 
grant bunch  of  mignonette  to  press  in  my  Bible. 

Such  experiences  as  this  cannot  fail  to  mould 
the  future  of  any  child  of  God.  Along  the  years 
we  have  met  each  other  since  then.  I  believe  each 
one  of  that  small  company  recognizes  as  the  chief 
question  for  admonition  in  all  time  to  come — a 
question  prompting  him  evermore  to  renewed  de- 
votion, a  question  crowded  with  significant  memory 
of  both  comfort  and  warning — "Did  not  I  see  thee 
ill  the  garden  with  him?'* 


258  STUDIES    IN    mark's   GOSPEI.. 


XXV. 

MISUNDERSTOOD  TO  THE  END. 

"Again  the  high  priest  asked  him,  and  said  unto  him,  Art 
THOU  THE  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  Blessed?" — Mark  14:61. 

It  seems  natural  to  expect,  now  that  Jesus  has 
come  before  the  highest  and  most  dignified  court  of 
his  nation,  that  he  will  secure  some  consideration 
and  be  treated  with  a  measure  of  regard  for  his 
rights.  His  enemies  will  be  there,  but  his  friends 
likewise  will  be  there  to  stand  by  him;  and  in  the 
end  he  will  receive  a  patient  and  fair  hearing,  such 
as  he  never  has  had  yet. 

But  now  we  look  in  upon  the  chamber  in  the 
high  priest's  palace,  and  Jesus  seems  to  be  entirely 
alone.  No  picture  of  him  can  be  found  elsewhere 
in  the  Bible  so  indescribably  pathetic.  He  has 
not  one  friend  in  that  room.  The  court  which  is 
to  examine  him  has  prejudged  his  case  already. 
These  members  of  the  council  have  assembled  sud- 
denly, not  to  consider,  but  to  condemn.  The  whole 
transaction  is  only  a  miserable  farce  and  a  travesty 
of  justice. 

Why  ?  The  answer  is  easy :  Jesus  Christ  was 
above  the  comprehension  of  his  generation.  He 
was  misunderstood  in  the  beginning;  here  now  we 
discover  that  he  was  misunderstood  to  the  end. 
Ten  verses  of  this  chapter  contain  a  description  of 


MISUNDERSTOOD   TO   THE    END.  259 

five  misconceptions,  every  one  of  which  was  in  pol- 
icy a  bhinder  and  in  nature  a  crime. 

I.  We  may  find  profit  in  tracing  these  out,  each 
in  its  turn;  then  we  shall  be  able  to  draw  for  our- 
selves the  lessons  of  instruction  which  are  conveyed 
by  an  incident  so  suggestive. 

I.  To  begin  w4th,  these  bigoted  rulers  misun- 
derstood the  entire  life  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  facts 
which  came  to  their  ears  were  distorted  and  confu- 
sing. These  people  longed  to  entrap  so  dangerous 
a  preacher  in  the  midst  of  some  political  disturb- 
ance, some  social  misdemeanor,  so  that  they  could 
make  him  obnoxious  to  the  Roman  law.  Hence 
they  sought  help  from  the  bystanders  and  the  popu- 
lace at  large.  They  wished  some  one  to  accuse  him 
of  a  capital  crime,  and  then  he  could  be  put  to 
death  by  the  governor. 

Witnesses  enough  they  were  able  to  secure;  but 
the  trouble  with  them  was  they  differed  so  in  their 
testimony;  *' their  witness  agreed  not  together." 
Each  man  had  his  own  story  to  tell.  Popular 
imagination  was  wild  over  this  Nazarene  rabbi. 
Nobody  ever  had  thoroughly  understood  the  mys- 
tery of  his  career.  His  life  had  run  on  since  the 
day  when  he  had  earliest  made  himself  manifest  to 
John  the  Baptist  down  by  the  Jordan,  and  always 
he  was  talking  of  some  crisis  in  the  near  future 
which  he  called  his  "hour."  He  intimated  that 
he  was  in  secret  and  deadly  conflict  with  a  being  of 
whom  he  spoke  as  "  the  prince  of  this  world,"  and 
sometimes  as  the  head  of  an  unseen  host,  "the 
powers  of  the  air."     Little  by  little  this  strange 


26o  STUDIES    IN    mark's    GOSPEI.. 

teacher  continued  to  sunder  himself  from  all  around 
him.  By-and-by  his  work,  as  it  drew  near  its 
completeness,  began  to  cut  him  loose  from  one 
association  after  another;  he  never  married,  he  had 
no  earthly  home.  He  became  a  pilgrim  and  a 
sojourner,  with  nowhere  to  lay  his  head.  As  we 
read  the  inspired  story  we' notice  how  inexplicably 
the  minor  characters  in  the  drama  pass  away  with- 
out apology  or  explanation.  John  the  Baptist  is 
abruptly  beheaded.  Joseph,  his  reputed  father, 
dies  quietly  out  of  history.  Simon  Peter  denies 
him,  Judas  betrays  him,  and  the  rest  of  the  disci- 
ples forsake  him.  And  here  at  last  he  stands  be- 
fore the  Sanhedrin  without  an  adherent.  He  could 
have  said  in  the  words  of  the  evangelic  prophet :  ^'I 
have  trodden  the  wine-press  alone,  and  of  the  peo- 
ple there  was  none  with  me."  Nobody  understood 
his  life. 

2.  Then  add  to  this,  in  the  second  place,  the 
fact  that  these  sagacious-looking  councillors  totally 
misunderstood  the  doctrines  which  Jesus  had  been 
preaching.  They  brought  in  at  last  a  company  of 
ill-disposed  people  who  were  willing  to  character- 
ize, or  rather  to  caricature,  our  Lord's  public  dec- 
larations and  give  them  their  worst  meaning:  "And 
there  stood  up  certain  and  bare  false  witness  against 
him,  saying.  We  heard  him  say,  I  will  destroy  this 
temple  that  is  made  with  hands,  and  in  three  days 
I  will  build  another  made  without  hands.  And  not 
even  so  did  their  witness  agree  together." 

Of  course  these  malicious  creatures  could  not 
agree  with  each  other,  for  no  one  of  them  had  any 


MISUNDERSTOOD   TO   THE    END.  26 1 

intelligent  notion  of  what  these  words  signified. 
One  of  the  evangelists  tells  ns  afterwards  that  Jesus 
was  speaking  of  the  temple  of  his  body,  wdiicli  was 
to  lie  in  the  grave  for  three  days  and  then  be  raised 
into  a  new  and  glorious  body.  Our  Lord  foresaw 
plainly  all  the  sad,  painful,  and  humiliating  circum- 
stances of  his  crucifixion  and  burial.  This  indeed 
was  what  made  his  experience  so  solitary. 

The  anticipation  of  evil  which  is  sure  to  come 
upon  ourselves  is  frequently  more  severe  and  diffi- 
cult to  bear  than  the  evil  itself.  The  imagination 
dwells  upon  the  horror  and  clothes  it  with  a  ten- 
fold pain.  A  gloomy  dread  creeps  over  and  into 
the  whole  soul.  There  is  just  this  difference  be- 
tween the  actual  sufferings  of  a  sentient  man  and 
an  unintelligent  brute.  The  one  knows  what  is  at 
hand ;  the  other  suspects  nothing  till  it  comes. 
Abraham  going  with  his  son  into  the  mountain  for 
the  commanded  sacrifice  of  his  first-born  doubtless 
had  far  more  exquisite  torture  than  did  the  ram  in 
the  thicket  which  at  last  proved  to  be  the  selected 
victim.  The  Saviour  was  omniscient  concerning 
his  work  of  atonement.  He  knew  every  pang  of 
body,  mind,  and  soul  he  was  before  long  to  bear. 

In  this  his  secret  was  unshared.  It  is  of  no  use 
to  say  that  more  than  once  he  vividly  pictured  to 
those  around  him  the  woes  he  was  to  meet.  Even 
the  disciples  did  not  appreciate  his  meaning  in  the 
descriptions  he  gave  of  his  coming  death.  If  they 
accepted  the  fact  that  he  would  be  betrayed  and 
then  killed  through  the  instigation  of  the  priests, 
their   minds   fell    far  short   of  comprehending  his 


262  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPEIv. 

depth  of  foreseen  sorrow.  We  should  be  ready  to 
say  they  considered  much  of  his  language  as  the 
outflow  of  a  sensitive  and  foreboding  spirit.  On 
one  occasion  Simon  Peter  thought  he  was  unusu- 
ally depressed ;  he  took  him  aside  and  began  to 
chide  him  for  his  unnecessary  melancholy:  ^'Be  it 
far  from  thee,  Lord;  this  shall  not  be  unto  thee!" 

So  there  he  stood  before  the  council,  a  solemn 
and  burdened  man.  Back  into  himself  he  was  com- 
pelled to  go,  thinking  perhaps  without  any  expecta- 
tion of  ever  being  pitied  or  understood:  "  I  have  a 
baptism  to  be  baptized  with,  and  how  am  I  strait- 
ened till  it  be  accomplished."  Unable  to  make 
himself  understood,  he  fell  into  the  silence  of  his 
own  reserve. 

3.  And  then,  we  notice  next,  even  his  silence 
was  misunderstood:  "And  the  high  priest  stood  up 
in  the  midst  and  asked  Jesus,  saying,  Answerest 
thou  nothing?  What  is  it  which  these  witness 
against  thee  ?  But  he  held  his  peace  and  answered 
nothing."  From  our  knowledge  of  ordinary  hu- 
man nature,  we  should  surmise  that  this  ecclesiastic 
deemed  Jesus  surly  and  morose-tempered.  He  may 
have  imagined  that  this  dangerous  rabbi,  now  sud- 
denly interrupted  in  his  popularity  with  the  com- 
mon people  who  heard  him  gladly,  had  become 
petulant  or  sullen.  But  the  fact  is,  they  all  misun- 
derstood the  errand  the  Saviour  came  upon.  What 
good  would  it  do  for  him  now  to  talk?  Suppose  it 
had  been  possible  for  the  Son  of  man,  thus  already 
in  the  very  grip  of  his  enemies  and  feeling  their 
violence,  to  set  himself  free  from  them  by  force  of 


MISUNDERSTOOD  TO  THE    END.  263 

argument  or  by  witchery  of  eloquent  speech,  what 
good  would  it  do?  Jesus  Christ  came  to  this  world 
to  die;  he  must  die. 

All  these  sufferings  he  was  now  enduring,  all 
he  was  going  to  meet  at  the  Place  of  a  Skull,  were 
penal  and  expiatory.  He  was  a  substitute  for  oth- 
ers. For  himself  he  had  no  penalty  to  pay;  he  had 
no  ill-desert  whatever.  With  an  infinite  exaltation 
of  character,  and  with  a  perfect  purity  of  life  which 
no  one  of  our  fallen  race  could  imitate  or  even  ap- 
preciate, and  within  his  heart  cherishing  an  infinite 
abhorrence  of  evil  which  no  one  could  either  share 
or  understand,  he  yet  stood  voluntarily  in  the  place 
of  an  entire  world  already  condemned ;  he  was 
therefore  logically  a  culprit  before  the  broken  law 
of  God. 

This  it  was  now  quite  unnecessary  to  talk  about 
in  the  presence  of  the  Sanhedrin;  conversation  only 
availed  to  hinder  the  inevitable  and  to  prolong  an 
undignified  scuffle  in  a  court  without  jurisdiction. 
He  must  have  felt  a  kind  of  relief  as  he  noticed 
that  events  were  hastening.  But  it  saddens  us  to 
imagine  the  weight  of  unshared  grief  this  silence 
imposed  on  one  so  placed  at  the  moment.  John 
had  not  yet  grown  courageous  enough  to  come  in; 
Simon  Peter  was  out  in  the  quadrangle  swearing  he 
never  knew  him. 

Now  there  is  a  difference  that  we  all  compre- 
hend between  being  alone  and  being  lonely.  A 
traveller  upon  his  journey  is  alone,  but  not  neces- 
sarily lonely,  for  he  may  have  dear  memories  of 
the  home  he  has  left  as  well  as  bright  anticipations 


264  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

of  the  rest  he  is  nearing;  and  so  the  Inner  world 
of  his  imagination  is  peopled  anew  with  welcome 
companionship.  So  a  fisherman,  out  in  his  little 
l)oat  upon  the  solemn  ocean,  even  though  he  may 
be  like  a  mere  speck  on  the  waves,  is  not  lonely,  no 
matter  how  distantly  alone  he  is,  for  he  knows  that 
the  spark  he  sees  far  away,  as  the  night  creeps  on, 
is  a  light  in  the  window  of  his  hut,  set  for  his  wel- 
come when  his  nets  bring  in  the  evening  meal. 
There  is  a  separation  which  after  all  is  not  solitude; 
and  any  man  of  sensibility  can  be  reserved  without 
being  lonesome,  for  a  true  heart  recreates  the  circle 
from  which  it  is  sundered. 

But  Jesus  Christ  at  this  crisis-moment  knew 
that  the  circle  which  once  trusted  him  was  broken 
and  scattered.  He  had  said  some  time  before  that 
this  would  be  so:  ''  Behold,  the  hour  cometh,  yea, 
is  now  come,  that  ye  shall  be  scattered,  every  man 
to  his  own,  and  shall  leave  me  alone;  and  yet  I  am 
not  alone,  because  the  Father  is  with  me."  There 
was  not  one  human  being  on  this  entire  planet  w^ith 
any  kind  of  genuine  association  with  him  in  accom- 
plishing his  "decease  at  Jerusalem."  What  then 
w^as  the  use  of  talking  any  more?  He  was  simply 
fulfilling  a  fragment  of  old  prophecy,  spoken  more 
than  seven  hundred  years  before:  "  He  is  brought 
as  a  lamb  to  the  slaughter,  and  as  a  sheep  before 
her  shearers  is  dumb,  so  he  openeth  not  his 
mouth."     (Isa.  53:7.) 

4.  We  must  connect  with  this,  in  the  fourth 
place,  the  fact  that  this  council  misunderstood  the 
entire  purpose  of  our  I^ord:  "Again  the  high  priest 


MISUNDERSTOOD   TO   THE    END.  265 

asked  lilm,  and  saitli  unto  him,  Art  thou  the  Christ, 
the  Son  of  the  Blessed  ?  And  Jesus  said,  I  am:  and 
ye  shall  see  the  Son  of  man  sitting  at  the  right 
hand  of  power  and  coming  with  the  clouds  of 
heaven.'*  This  time,  now  that  the  questions  had 
ceased  to  be  merely  personal  and  had  become  offi- 
cial, Jesus  cordially  and  candidly  made  answer. 
And  nothing  in  all  this  story  shows  the  blindness 
and  igrnorance  of  those  masters  in  Israel  so  evi- 
dently  as  their  awful  rage  at  w^hat  he  said:  "And 
the  high  priest  rent  his  clothes,  and  saith.  What 
further  need  have  we  of  witnesses  ?  Ye  have  heard 
the  blasphemy:  what  think  ye?  And  they  all  con- 
demned him  to  be  worthy  of  death." 

They  sought  to  know  whether  Jesus  claimed  to 
be  the  nation's  Messiah ;  and  the  instant  he  bore 
his  testimony  faithfully  and  acknowledged  his  di- 
vine lineage  and  commission  as  the  Son  of  God  and 
Judge  of  the  world,  they  raised  the  cry  of  blas- 
phemy. From  this  time  there  was  no  hope  of 
deliverance  for  him. 

So  the  grand  purpose  of  redemption  proceeded. 
The  ancient  scape-goat,  after  the  hands  of  the 
priest  had  put  the  sins  of  the  congregation  on  its 
head,  was  driven  away,  solitary,  into  the  wilder- 
ness. That  doomed  creature  was  meant  to  be  in 
this  particular  a  precise  type  of  the  Christ.  Our 
Saviour  bore  the  sins  of  the  w^hole  world  in  his 
own  person.  Simon  the  Cyrenian  helped  him  to 
carry  the  cross,  but  no  one  helped  him  to  carry  the 
curse.  This  one  victim  was  the  only  victim  pn 
the  altar.     He  stood  between  our  fallen  race  and 

12 


266  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

the  majesty  of  the  law  they  had  broken.  Moses 
once  tried  to  endure  a  burden  like  this  fifteen  cen- 
turies before,  and  he  tried  bravely  too ;  but  he 
broke  down  under  it,  and  cried  out  unto  a  merciful 
God,  ^'I  am  not  able  to  bear  all  this  people  alone, 
because  it  is  too  heavy  for  me.''  But  Jesus  could 
not  be  allowed  to  break;  a  divine  purpose  upheld 
him  and  urged  him  on;  he  was  obliged  to  bear  it  to 
the  end,  to  suffer  and  be  strong. 

Those  rulers  in  the  Sanhedrin  were  too  bigoted 
and  dull  to  understand  that.  There  was  no  one 
among  them  to  appreciate  his  purpose  any  more 
than  to  share  it.  Nor  anywhere  else:  the  wicked 
world  mocked  the  Immanuel  who  was  dying  to 
save  it.  Never  had  a  deliverer  such  trouble  to 
find  captives  to  free;  never  had  a  teacher  such  diffi- 
culty to  gather  pupils  to  teach;  never  had  prince 
such  hindrance  in  seeking  paupers  to  enrich ; 
never  had  any  giver  such  infinite  trials  in  discov- 
ering receivers  for  the  inestimable  gifts  he  longed 
to  bestow.  No  wonder  he  was  silent;  no  wonder 
he  lived  apart;  it  was  natural  for  him  to  say,  "The 
prince  of  this  world  cometh,  and  he  hath  nothing  in 
me."  He  felt  he  had  no  part  nor  lot  in  the  admin- 
istration of  such  a  kingdom  of  misrule  as  the  earth 
seemed  now  to  be  under.  He  was  "separate  from 
sinners  ''  and  yet  he  was  suffering  for  sinners' 
sakes,  and  still  those  sinners  went  on  sinning  and 
misjudging  him. 

5.  And  thus  we  reach  the  fifth  and  worst  of 
thpse  misconceptions  intimated  to  us  in  the  passage 
we  are  studying.     The  chief  priests  and  the  people 


MISUNDERSTOOD  TO  THE)   END.  267 

tlicy  influenced  misunderstood  the  temper  of  tlieir 
illustrious  captive.  They  thought  he  was  a  man 
of  like  passions  with  themselves.  At  once  they 
commenced  a  series  of  small  insults  and  petty  acts 
of  violence  totally  unworthy  of  the  occasion  and 
the  court.  *'And  some  began  to  spit  on  him  and 
to  cover  his  face  and  to  buffet  him,  and  to  say  imto 
him,  Prophesy:  and  the  servants  did  strike  him 
with  the  palms  of  their  hands."  Think  of  this  as 
a  form  of  treatment  for  the  real  Redeemer  of  the 
world!  They  had  not  discovered  the  actual  issue; 
they  had  not  grasped  the  position.  Such  feeble 
wounds  for  a  spirit  like  his  were  more  insignificant 
than  the  stinging  of  an  insect. 

He  was  too  far  above  that  wretched  crowd  to 
feel  provoked.  Great  thinkers  are  always  solitary. 
Great  thoughts  lift  men  out  of  the  region  of  little 
contumelies.  We  see  this  even  in  common  history. 
The  complaint  most  frequently  uttered  by  Napo- 
leon Bonaparte  at  St.  Helena  was,  **Men  do  not 
understand  me."  So  said  Kepler  when  he  put  forth 
his  volume  at  which  his  contemporaries  laughed: 
"Whether  it  will  be  read  by  the  future  or  the  pres- 
ent age  I  have  no  care;  if  God  has  waited  so  long 
for  an  observer,  I  can  afford  to  wait  for  one  who 
knows  what  I  mean." 

Jesus  had  no  heart  to  resent  these  contemptible 
wrongs.  One  answer  he  made  is  recorded  by  the 
evangelist  John,  but  does  not  appear  here.  When 
a  blow  fell  upon  him  at  the  higl;  priest's  direct 
order,  he  replied  calmly,  *'If  I  have  spoken  evil, 
bear  witness  of  the  evil;  but  if  well,  why  smitest 


268  STUDIES  IN   mark's  GOSPEL. 

thou  me?"  For  the  rest  he  had  no  harshness,  no 
rejoinder,  no  resistance.  ^'When  he  was  reviled, 
he  reviled  not  again;  when  he  suffered,  he  threat- 
ened not;  but  committed  himself  to  him  that  judg- 
eth  righteously."  So  he  went  on  with  his  work: 
went  from  this  council-room  to  Pilate's  judgment- 
hall;  went  on  to  Calvary  and  the  cross. 

II.  Hence,  good  Christian  friends,  now  that  our 
patient  exposition  is  ended,  we  have  only  to  receive 
a  few  lessons  of  practical  bearing  for  ourselves. 

1.  We  can  understand  at  last  that  the  type  of 
religious  separateness  for  each  believer  is  found  in 
this  experience  of  Jesus  Christ.  He  was  solitary, 
not  because  of  his  superciliousness,  but  because  of 
his  sanctity.  It  was  not  because  he  was  odd  or 
singular  that  these  people  misunderstood  him  to 
the  end,  but  because  he  was  so  good,  so  generous, 
so  gentle,  and  so  pure. 

2.  We  see  likewise  that  it  is  gentleness  always 
which  makes  men  genuinely  great.  We  need  not 
hesitate  to  declare  that  there  never  has  been  so 
much  as  one  other  force  which  swayed  the  world  as 
this  closing  scene  of  Jesus'  career  has  swayed  it. 
There  now  his  life  stands,  out  in  the  twilight  of  that 
council-chamber.  It  was  a  sad  life,  but  it  was  a 
noble  one.  *'  Let  this  mind  be  in  you  which  was 
also  in  Christ."  Keep  a  scene  like  this  before  your 
eyes;  gazQ  on  that  Saviour  till  you  begin  at  last  to 
understand  ' '  the  Son  of  the  Blessed. '  ^ 


CHRIST'S   KINGSHIP   AND   KINGDOM,  269 

XXVI. 

CHRIST'S  KINGSHIP  AND  KINGDOM. 

"And  Pilate  asked  him,  Art  thou  the  King  of  the  Jews? 
And  he  answering  said  unto  him,  Thou  sayest  it." — Mark 
15:2. 

In  the  first  commentary  that  I  opened  for  stndy 
of  this  passage  I  found  a  full-paged  illustration. 
It  represented  the  Roman  judgment-hall.  The 
governor  was  upon  the  raised  platform ;  the  Saviour 
was  just  below  him,  standing  on  the  floor.  No 
guards  were  in  the  room;  no  disciples  were  beside 
Jesus;  no  courtiers  were  around  Pilate.  Only  these 
two  figures  confronted  each  other.  Pilate  leans 
forward  anxious,  his  hands  on  his  knees.  Jesus  is 
intrepidly  facing  him,  his  arms  pinioned  with 
thongs  behind  his  back.  The  title  is  "Jesus  before 
Pilate." 

It  is  a  scene  full  of  meaning.  I  marvel  that  the 
artists  do  not  attempt  it  oftener.  But  we  turn  from 
the  picture  abruptly,  for  it  has  more  to  teach  by  its 
suggestion  than  by  its  mere  lines  of  drawing.  It  is 
plain  that  this  whole  story  centres  on  the  question 
which  the  Roman  governor  put  to  our  Lord  con- 
cerning his  being  the  King  of  the  Jews;  to  which 
question  Jesus  returned  answer  that  he  was  a  king. 
And  out  of  a  statement  so  astonishing  grows  the 
subsequent  conversation.  Pilate  in  sarcasm  calls 
Jesus  by  the  name  twice  in  his  public  address  to 
the  infuriated  people;  this  seems  to  inflame  their 


270  STUDIES   IN    MARK'S  GOSPEL. 

wrath  more  than  anything  else  he  did.  They  catch 
up  the  nickname  and  begin  to  make  sport  savagely 
with  the  notion;  they  crown  his  forehead  with  a 
prickly  wreath;  they  put  a  walking-staff  in  his 
hand  for  a  mock  sceptre;  they  contrive  somehow  to 
get  a  gown  of  royal  purple  to  put  on  him  instead  of 
his  own  seamless  robe;  and  then  with  many  a 
ribald  shout  of  laughter  they  awake  the  echoes  of 
the  streets  with  their  cry,  *'Hail,  King  of  the 
Jews!"  It  is  evident  that  this  name  forms  the  in- 
cident of  the  occasion. 

I.  lyCt  us  fix  our  attention,  first,  upon  the  royal 
proclamation  which  our  Saviour  made  in  his  answer 
to  the  interrogation  of  Pilate. 

I.  He  gave  as  the  description  of  his  kingdom 
that  it  was  not  of  this  world.  Pilate  said,  "Art 
thou  a  king?"  Jesus  gave  him  the  reply  that  in- 
dicated the  strongest  kind  of  asseveration,  "Thou 
sayest  that  I  am  a  king."  But  he  added,  "My 
kingdom  is  not  from  hence."  Now  we  are  aware 
that  every  monarch  must  have  some  sort  of  "divine 
right"  to  rule  on  a  throne;  what  was  the  right 
that  Jesus  here  asserted  as  his  own? 

It  might  have  been  the  right  of  possession.  He 
might  have  shown  this  Roman  governor  that  he 
owned  these  people,  for  with  him  were  "the oracles 
of  God,"  which  they  revered  as  supreme.  He 
could  have  said  to  him,  "I  am  that  Messiah  who 
was  predicted  by  their  prophets  to  reign."  But 
then  Pilate,  the  ignorant  unbeliever,  could  have 
answered  to  this,  "  I  do  not  recognize  the  right  of 
even  the  Jews'  Messiah  to  be  a  king." 


CHRIST'S   KINGSHIP   AND   KINGDOM.  271 

It  might  have  been  the  right  of  conquest.  Jesus 
might  have  told  him  that  he  had  subjected  these 
people  by  his  miracles,  that  he  proved  divine  au- 
thority by  wielding  divine  power.  But  to  this 
Pilate  had  for  a  ready  reply  the  woful  fact  that  it 
was  the  Jews  who  had  already  delivered  this  so- 
called  Messiah  into  his  hands.  They  had  declared 
they  would  not  have  him  to  reign  over  them,  and 
were  now  seeking  his  death. 

It  might  have  been  the  right  of  acceptance;  for 
Christ  in  sober  earnest  could  have  appealed  away 
from  priests  to  populace,  and  reminded  Pilate  that 
once  on  the  shore  of  Gennesaret  the  people's  en- 
thusiasm had  reached  such  a  height  that  he  had 
been  obliged  to  withdraw  himself  miraculously  from 
the  multitudes  lest  they  should  make  him  a  king 
**by  force;"  and  just  now,  only  yesterday,  as  it 
were,  right  here  out  near  the  brook  Kidron,  men, 
women,  and  children  had  strewn  his  path  through 
the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat  with  olive-branches  and 
palms,  and  had  spread  their  garments  under  the 
feet  of  the  borrowed  beast  he  rode  in  a  royal  triumph 
even  into  the  gate  of  Jerusalem.  But  here,  again, 
Pilate  was  at  liberty  to  interrupt  him  with  a  fine 
sarcasm  in  the  suggestion  that  he  had  better  settle 
such  matters  with  Herod,  the  regular  heir;  for 
there  seemed  for  thrones  now  rather  too  many  kings 
of  the  Jews  to  go  round. 

What  Jesus  did  assert  in  his  own  behalf  was  the 
right  of  personal  genuineness  as  a  man,  and  hence 
as  the  king  of  men.  He  explained  a  confusion  in 
appearances  by  showing  that  his  kingdom  was  not 


272  STUDIES   IN    MARK'S   GOSPEL. 

material  nor  temporal,  not  even  hereditary  or  bellig- 
erent. It  was  "not  of  this  world,"  not  "from 
hence."  It  was  a  sovereignty  in  the  hearts  of 
human  beings;  it  was,  in  one  word,  the  kingdom 
of  truth  among  men.  The  heathen  governor,  of 
course,  did  not  dare  dispute  this;  indeed,  he  hardly 
knew  what  it  meant.  He  swiftly  closed  that  inter- 
view by  asking  the  memorable  question,  "What  is 
truth?" 

2.  Understanding,  therefore,  precisely  what 
Jesus  in  this  definite  proclamation  of  his  sovereignty 
claimed  as  the  basis  of  his  divine  right,  we  are  pre- 
pared to  ask.  What  was  the  nature  of  his  kingdom  ? 

It  was  spiritual  in  every  particular.  It  did  not 
need  any  fleet  or  flag;  it  would  not  want  either 
army  or  arsenal;  it  did  not  propose  to  collect  cus- 
toms or  make  treaties.  This  imperial  officer  saw 
clearly  that  Jesus  offered  no  menace  to  Caesar.  His 
errand  was  not  political,  but  personal  and  religious. 
The  kingdom  he  was  establishing  over  Judaea  and 
the  world  was  exactly  that  which  Satan  had  prom- 
ised him  when  tempted  in  the  wilderness,  that 
which  he  had  then  contemptuously  repudiated  be- 
cause he  would  take  no  authority  or  office  from  the 
tempter's  hands  nor  accept  any  of  the  devil's  con- 
ditions annexed  to  the  tender. 

And  yet  this  kingdom  was  to  be  organic  to  the 
last  degree  of  institution.  It  w^ould  have  its  laws, 
its  orders,  and  its  rulers.  It  openly  announced  that 
it  would  lay  its  hand  on  men  and  money,  lands  and 
seas,  in  order  that  it  might  use  them  as  means  of 
advancement  in  raisinor  the  race  to  the  image  of 


CHRIST'S   KINGSHIP   AND   KINGDOM.  273 

God  in  purity  and  holiness  and  strength.  The  one 
purpose  of  the  organisation  should  be  moral  and  re- 
ligious; it  would  be  an  agency  and  instrument  for 
the  propagation  of  the  highest  ends  among  men;  it 
would  labor  to  secure  the  true,  the  good,  and  the 
beautiful  in  all  the  world  till  the  race  of  fallen  hu- 
manity should  be  redeemed.  So  ran  the  whole 
tenor  of  Christ's  proclamation;  and  we  now  see 
that  this  kingdom  of  truth  was  simply  what  we  call 
the  invisible  church. 

II.  Let  us  then  study  the  process  by  which  this 
kingdom,  of  which  Jesus  was  the  king,  was  estab- 
lished on  the  earth. 

1.  In  the  beginning  Christ  united  a  few  true 
men  to  himself  for  the  sake  of  the  work  they  could 
do  and  the  help  they  could  bring  him.  It  was  not 
the  coming  together  of  a  people,  who,  as  soon  as 
they  began  to  feel  the  need  of  government,  elected 
a  king.  Christ  was  the  earliest  and  the  only  king 
this  kingdom  ever  had;  the  king  lived  before  the 
kingdom  had  any  subjects.  But  when  Jesus  came 
forward  to  redeem  souls  from  sin,  and  so  make  men 
true  and  pure,  he  selected  a  band  of  workers  as  his 
associates  in  propagating  the  truth  which  should 
make  men  free. 

2.  Then,  second,  he  joined  these  to  each-  other 
by  rendering  them  efficient  in  the  instant  conversion 
of  souls.  He  chose  Andrew,  and  at  once  managed 
it  so  that  Andrew  "found"  Simon.  He  chose 
Philip,  and  in  twenty-four  hours  Philip  "found" 
Nathanael.  And  right  here,  in  order  to  show  every- 
body the  principle  ou  which  this  extension  of  his 

SluJIcB  lu  Maik'8  Gospel,  1 2'' 


274  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

spiritual  sway  must  proceed,  he  took  pains  to  say 
why  Nathanael  was  accepted  in  particular — he  was 
an  Israelite  without  guile;  that  is,  he  was  an  un- 
reproached,  genuine,  just,  true  man,  precisely  what 
every  one  needed  to  be  in  a  kingdom  of  truth, 
whose  subjects  must  be  simply  true. 

3.   So  by  slow  accretions  the  slender  community 
was  collected;  an  inconspicuous  realm  was  growing 
around  a  crownless  Monarch.     Now  there  must  be 
begun  a  process  of  disentanglement  from  the  world. 
It  is  necessary  that  we  should  recollect  that  these 
disciples  and  converts  were  not  at  all  united  to  each 
other  before  they  were  united  to  Christ.     It  was  by 
being  united  to  him  that  they  became  united  to 
each  other.     Jesus  taught  them;  but  it  was  not  his 
doctrine  that  organized  them.     Jesus  lived  blame- 
lessly in  their  sight;  but  it  was  not  his  example 
that  organized  them.     It  was  his  personal  kingship 
in  the  truth  that  organized  them;    for  that  made 
them  one  with  him,  and  so  with  each  other  one 
and  with  all  that  came  after.      It  challenged  an 
immediate  and  intelligent  separation  of  each  one  by 
himself  from  all  the   word   and   works   the   great 
antagonist  of  good  was  using  for  the  soul's  destruc- 
tion.    Christ  struck  at  those  mixed  multitudes  of 
hypocrites  with  terrible  violence:  *' Why  do  ye  not 
understand  my  speech?    even   because   ye   cannot 
hear  my  word.     Ye  are  of  your  father  the  devil, 
and  the  lusts  of  your  father  ye  will  do:  he  was  a 
murderer  from  the  beginning,  and  abode  not  in  the 
truth,  because  there  is  no  truth  in  him.     When  he 
speaketh  a  lie,  he  speaketh  of  his  own:  for  he  is  a 


CHRIST'S    KINGSHIP   AND    KINGDOM.  275 

liar  and  the  father  of  it.  And  because  I  tell  you 
the  truth,  ye  believe  me  not.'^ 

It  was  thus  that  our  lyord  kept  winning  acces- 
sions to  his  kingdom  by  an  exalted  purity  and 
strength  of  truth  in  himself;  he  united  his  followers 
to  him  by  incorporating  his  own  life  in  them,  and 
in  the  same  form  of  mysterious  union  he  bound 
them  to  each  other.  This  point  is  insisted  upon  in 
Paul's  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians.  He  was  rebuking 
some  that  were  insincere  and  encouraging  others 
who  were  growing  in  genuineness:  ^'But  ye  have 
not  so  learned  Christ,  if  so  be  that  ye  have  heard 
him,  and  have  been  taught  by  him,  as  the  truth  is 
in  Jesus:  that  ye  put  off  concerning  the  former  con- 
versation the  old  man,  which  is  corrupt  according 
to  the  deceitful  lusts,  and  be  renewed  in  the  spirit 
of  your  mind;  and  that  ye  p'^t  on  the  new  man, 
which  after  God  is  created  in  righteousness  and  true 
holiness.  Wherefore  putting  away  lying,  speak 
every  man  truth  wi-th  his  neighbor:  for  we  are 
members  one  of  another.''  All  believers  were  to 
be  true  because  Christ  was  true.  They  were  mem- 
bers of  each  other,  as  limbs  of  the  same  body; 
branches  of  each  other,  because  all  of  them  were 
branches  of  Christ  the  one  true  vine. 

4.  Then,  in  the  fourth  place,  a  tremendous  sift- 
ing of  the  entire  community  ensued.  Suddenly 
this  great  Teacher,  on  one  or  two  historic  occa- 
sions, put  forth  the  most  revolutionary  doctrines  in 
his  preaching  publicly — all  true  and  orthodox  and 
right,  but  extreme  and  radical  and  calculated  to 
test  their  obedience  and  love  to  the  last  degree. 


2/6  STUDIES   IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

For  example,  tins:  ''The  Jews  therefore  strove 
among  themselves,  saying.  How  can  this  man  give 
us  his  flesh  to  eat?  Then  Jesus  said  unto  them, 
Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto  you,  except  ye  eat  the 
flesh  of  the  Son  of  man,  and  drink  his  blood,  ye 
have  no  life  in  you.  Whoso  eateth  my  flesh  and 
drinketh  my  blood  hath  eternal  life ;  and  I  will 
raise  him  up  at  the  last  day.  For  my  flesh  is  meat 
indeed,  and  my  blood  is  drink  indeed.  He  that 
eateth  my  flesh  and  drinketh  my  blood  dwelleth 
in  me,  and  I  in  him.  As  the  living  Father  hath 
sent  me,  and  I  live  by  the  Father,  so  he  that  eateth 
me,  even  he  shall  live  by  me.  This  is  that  bread 
which  came  down  from  heaven;  not  as  your  fathers 
did  eat  manna,  and  are  dead:  he  that  eateth  of  this 
bread  shall  live  for  ever." 

The  result  of  such  strong  doctrine  was  to  stumble 
many  of  his  friends.  "Many  therefore  of  his  disci- 
ples, when  they  had  heard  this,  said.  This  is  a  hard 
saying;  who  can  hear  it?  When  Jesus  knew  in 
himself  that  his  disciples  murmured  at  it,  he  said 
unto  them,  Doth  this  offend  you?  What  and  if  ye 
shall  see  the  Son  of  man  ascend  up  where  he  was 
before?  It  is  the  Spirit  that  quickeneth;  the  flesh 
profiteth  nothing:  the  words  that  I  speak  unto  you, 
they  are  spirit  and  they  are  life.  But  there  are 
some  of  you  that  believe  not."  The  point  which 
our  Lord  pressed  was  that  of  a  supreme  and  vital 
imion  to  himself.  Those  who  took  their  chances  in 
the  kingdom  of  truth  must  be  "in  Christ  Jesus;" 
for  he  was  the  king,  and  the  king  was  truth.  It 
was  impossible  that  all  of  this  crowd  should  have 


277 

wit  enough  to  understand  liim.  And  some  went 
away;  and  some  stayed  and  grew  mystic  in  love  for 
him  personally,  so  as  to  lose  truth  in  mere  attach- 
ment to  Jesus.  "From  that  time  many  of  his  dis- 
ciples went  back  and  walked  no  more  with  him. 
Then  said  Jesus  unto  the  twelve,  Will  ye  also  go 
away?  Then  Simon  Peter  answered  him,  Lord,  to 
whom  shall  we  go  !  thou  hast  the  words  of  eternal 
life.  And  we  believe  and  are  sure  that  thou  art 
that  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God." 

5.  Then  the  next  step,  now  become  essential, 
was  for  our  Lord  to  disappear  from  their  sympathy 
and  sight.  There  was  springing  up,  naturally 
enough,  a  human  regard,  a  manly  friendship,  a 
fraternal  tenderness,  which  was  diverting  his  ad- 
herents from  truth  alone — truth,  solitary,  grand, 
and  simple,  as  the  gift  of  God  to  men.  So  Jesus 
told  the  company  one  day  as  they  sat  together  that 
he  should  leave  them  soon.  We  have  all  read  the 
tale,  and  we  remember  how  this  almost  broke  their 
hearts;  it  appeared  to  them  as  if  the  light  and 
warmth  of  the  sun  had  gone  out  of  the  sky  at  once. 
Why  was  this  departure  "expedient"?  The  verse 
so  often  quoted  from  one  of  the  later  epistles  shows 
how  these  early  believers  understood  it  afterwards: 
"Wherefore  henceforth  know  we  no  man  after  the 
flesh :  yea,  though  we  have  known  Christ  after  the 
flesh,  yet  now  henceforth  know  we  him  no  more." 
It  was  essential  that  every  real  Christian  should  be 
satisfied  with  the  truth — pure  truth.  Souls  must 
learn  to  know  and  love  Jesus  as  the  king  of  the 
kingdom ;  not  as  a  historic  head  or  a  personal  friend. 


278 

but  as  tlie  embodiment  of  the  truth  as  it  ever  should 
be  and  remain  in  the  thoughts  and  lives  of  men. 

Then  there  remained  very  little  more  for  the 
Saviour  to  do  before  he  left  his  disciples;  one  prom- 
ise and  one  prayer,  however,  he  gave  to  them. 
The  promise  was  that  the  Spirit  of  God,  the  Third 
Person  in  the  Trinity,  should  come  in  his  place  and 
be  loyally  subject  to  himself:  "But  when  the  Com- 
forter is  come,  whom  I  will  send  unto  you  from  the 
Father,  even  the  Spirit  of  truth,  which  proceedeth 
from  the  Father,  he  shall  testify  of  me.  . .  Howbeit, 
when  he,  the  Spirit  of  truth,  is  come,  he  will  guide 
you  into  all  truth:  for  he  shall  not  speak  of  him- 
self; but  whatsoever  he  shall  hear,  that  shall  he 
speak:  and  he  will  show  you  things  to  come.  He 
shall  glorify  me:  for  he  shall  receive  of  mine  and 
shall  show  it  unto  you.  All  things  that  the  Father 
hath  are  mine:  therefore  said  I  that  he  shall  take 
of  mine  and  shall  show  it  unto  you."  The  prayer 
was  that  grand  intercession  found  in  the  seventeenth 
chapter  of  the  gospel  of  John;  recall  its  phraseology 
just  for  one  moment:  "Holy  Father,  keep  through 
thine  own  name  those  whom  thou  hast  given  me, 
that  they  may  be  one,  as  w^e  are.  While  I  was 
with  them  in  the  world  I  kept  them  in  thy  name: 
those  that  thou  gavest  me  I  have  kept,  and  none  of 
them  is  lost,  but  the  son  of"  perdition;  that  the 
Scripture  might  be  fulfilled.  And  now  come  I  to 
thee,  and  these  things  I  speak  in  the  world,  that 
they  might  have  my  joy  fulfilled  in  themselves.  I 
have  given  them  thy  word,  and  the  world  hath 
hated  them,  because  they  are  not  of  the  world,  even 


CHRIST'S    KINGSHIP   AND   KINGDOM.  279 

as  I  am  not  of  the  world.  I  pray  not  that  thou 
shouldest  take  them  out  of  the  world,  but  that  thou 
shouldest  keep  them  from  the  evil.  They  are  not 
of  the  world,  even  as  I  am  not  of  the  world.  Sanc- 
tify them  through  thy  truth:  thy  word  is  truth." 

6.   Finally,  Jesus  went  away  as  he  said  and  the 
promised  Comforter  came.     The  kingdom  of  truth, 
so  far  as  its  earthly  management  historically  was 
concerned,  was  passed  over  to  the  Third  Person  of 
the  adorable  Godhead  in  the  place  of  the  Second. 
On  the  great  day  of  Pentecost  the  Holy  Ghost  de- 
scended.    He  remains  here  still,  the  Vicegerent  in 
the  kingdom  of  truth,  of  which  our  sovereign  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  ever  abides  the  only  adorable  King. 
Now,  with  a  passionate  love  and  loyalty  and  long- 
ing,  true  believers  lose  not  one  moment  more  in 
any    wistful    gazing    up    into    heaven.     Christ    is 
formed  in  them,  the  hope  of  glory,  a  present  help 
and  joy  in  their  hearts.     He  is  the  truth,  and  they 
are  a  true  generation,  and  so  he  is  w^ith  them  still. 
And  for  Christ's  sake,  for  Christ's  dear  sake,  be- 
cause he  said  so,  they  gather  now  and  then  around 
a  table  with  bread  and  wine  on  it,  and  they  meet 
and  greet  each  other  like  the  nobles  of  an  absent 
monarch  whom  they  expect  to  be  with  them  again 
before  long,  coming  back  to  his  own.     They  are  all 
one  in  Christ  Jesus,  and  he  is  going  to  be  evermore 
one  with  them. 

So  we  see,  once  for  all,  what  it  is  that  we  ask 
when  we  pray,  as  we  do  daily,  "Thy  kingdom 
come."  We  want  the  conversion  of  souls  to  a 
standard  of  truth;  more  subjects  in  this  realm  of 


28o  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPElv. 

Christ's  truth;  more  pure  women  and  more  honest 
men;  maidens   fair-foreheaded   in   honor,    and  lads 
that  will  scorn  to  lie;  more  genuineness  through  and 
through,  the  world  seeing  us  walking  in  the  light; 
more  glory  for  Christ's  covenant,  more  graces  for 
Christ's  people,  and  more  jewels  for  Christ's  crown. 
So  likewise  we  see  what  it  is  that  becomes  the 
overmastering   motive  of  Christian  experience   to 
which  the  last  and  tenderest  appeal  of  the  pulpit  is 
to  be  made:  it  is  love  and  loyalty  at  its  highest  in 
the  heart  of  any  true  man,  love  of  and  loyalty  to 
the  truth.     If  this  does  not  avail  to  stir  a  Christian 
to  liberality,  to  fidelity,  to  self-sacrifice,  then  there 
is  no  hope  for  him.     History  makes  record   that 
Avhen  Ccesar's  legion  mutinied,  no  argument  from 
interest  or  reason  could  persuade  the  malcontents  to 
lay  down  the  arms  of  their  rebellion;  but  the  mo- 
ment he  addressed  them  as  "Quirites,"  the  tumult 
was  hushed.     The  human  heart  is  mysterious  in  its 
emotions,  but  it  answers  to  one  name  at  least  if  it 
be  genuine  in  its  devotion.     It  may  not  avail  to 
plead  for  the  sake  of  mere  commercial  or  common- 
place benefits;  but  whenever  that  call  comes  forth, 
"Ye  that  are  Christ's,  now  serve  him!"  there  will 
be  heard  a  deep  response  in  every  loyal  soul.     Say 
to  each  one,    "Christian!  what  hath  thy  Lord  of 
truth  done  for  thee?"     Back  on  his  fealty  he  falls, 
his  heart  full  of  longing,  his  eyes  moist  with  tears. 
For  a  man  is  in  the  truth  and  of  the  truth  when  he 
belongs  to  the  kingdom  of  truth  of  which  Jesus 
Christ  is  the  King,  and  never  before.     "Every  one 
that  is  of  the  truth  heareth  his  voice." 


THK  SCENE   AT  CAI.VARY.  281 

XXVII. 
THE  SCENE  AT  CALVARY. 

"And  they  bring  him  unto  the  place  Golgotha,  which  is, 

BEING  interpreted,  ThE  PLACE  OF  A  SKULL."— iT/ar^  15:22. 

The  Mohammedans  believe  that  Jesus  Christ 
did  not  die,  but  that  he  mysteriously  ascended  un- 
hurt into  heaven;  and  then,  it  is  said,  Judas  Iscariot 
was  suddenly  changed  into  his  likeness  and  cruci- 
fied in  his  place.  This  seems  a  very  silly  fable,  in- 
tended to  give  relief  from  what  they  deemed  too 
shameful  to  bear. 

There  is  no  way  of  escaping  the  humiliation  of 
the  cross  except  by  glorying  in  it.  The  crucifixion 
of  Jesus  is  everything  to  us  or  it  is  nothing.  The 
moment  one  decides  to  rest  his  eternal  salvation 
upon  the  promises  and  provisions  of  the  gospel,  he 
accepts  all  that  this  deed  of  shame  involves.  He 
need  have  no  care  as  to  what  others  around  him 
think  of  it;  to  him  Christ  crucified  is  "the  power 
of  God  and  the  wisdom  of  God." 

I.  What  was  crucifixion  ?  To  the  devout  Chris- 
tian every  item  of  information  he  can  gain  concern- 
ing that  dread  scene  at  Calvary  is  of  the  utmost 
value. 

I.  It  was  foreign  in  every  sense  in  its  infliction 
upon  our  Lord.  This  kind  of  capital  punishment 
was  Roman  and  not  Jewish.  The  ancient  Latin 
writers  have  employed   the  strongest  of  all  their 


282  STUDIES  IN  MARK'S  GOSPEL. 

terms  of  opprobrium  in  speaking  of  it;  they  call  it 
*'the  worst  punishment  in  the  world."  Moreover, 
it  was  not  intended  for  citizens  of  creditable  condi- 
tion, but  for  bondmen  of  the  very  lowest  classes. 
There  was  ignominy  in  it  as  well  as  pain.  In- 
deed, except  in  rarest  instances,  it  was  not  inflicted 
for  political  misdemeanors,  but  only  for  the  mean- 
est and  most  heinous  of  crimes.  Jesus  was  not  one 
who  should  have  been  considered  exposed  to  it. 

2.  It  was  excessively  cruel  in  its  details.  The 
word  which  it  has  given  to  our  English  language 
indicates  its  severity.  To  be  *' excruciated  "  sim- 
ply means  to  be  in  suffering  like  that  of  crucifixion ; 
it  signifies  the  extreme  anguish  to  which  human 
sensibility  can  go.  The  criminal  was  usually  vio- 
lently scourged,  to  begin  with,  then  stretched  on 
his  back  along  the  perpendicular  beam.  Both  of 
his  hands,  being  extended  upon  the  bar  which  ran 
transversely  over  this,  were  spiked  through  to  its 
extremities.  And  in  like  manner  the  feet  wxre 
nailed  below.  "They  pierced  my  hands  and  my 
feet.'» 

3.  It  was  long  and  lingering  in  its  operation. 
Severe  as  these  wounds  were,  they  could  never  be 
very  dangerous.  Hardly  more  than  a  few  drops  of 
blood  fell  from  them.  It  would  have  been  too 
much  of  a  merciful  indulgence  for  this  mode  of  ex- 
ecution to  make  any  of  its  agonizing  strokes  imme- 
diately fatal.  Death  did  not  ensue  sometimes  until 
after  several  days  of  torture.  Even  then  it  was 
brought  on  by  weakness  and  starvation,  coupled 
with  the  low  fever  which  the  inflammation  from 


THK  SCENE   AT  CALVARY.  ^3 

the  wounds  sooner  or  later  produced.  The  great 
suffering  was  caused  by  the  constrained  posture  on 
the  cross,  the  soreness  of  the  members  from  tlie 
nails,  and  of  the  back  from  the  welts  raised  by  the 
whips  in  the  scourging.  Every  motion  brought 
with  it  only  anguish  without  relief.  Thus  the  poor 
body  was  permitted  to  hang,  with  no  respite  and  no 
hope,  through  the  night  and  through  the  day,  in 
the  chilliness  of  the  evening,  in  the  heat  of  the 
noon,  until  death  put  an  end  to  consciousness  and 
to  life. 

4.  Such  a  punishment  powerfully  arrested  the 
popular  imagination  as  a  spectacle.  Sometimes 
the  military  men  put  on  guard  w^ere  compelled  to 
accelerate  the  final  agony  by  brutally  beating  the 
legs  of  the  victims  with  bludgeons  till  the  bones 
were  crushed  and  the  sudden  shocks  produced  col- 
lapse. No  w^onder  people  called  this  "the  most 
cruel,  the  worst  possible  fate."  It  is  on  record  that 
a  soldier  once  said  that,  of  all  the  awful  sounds  hu- 
man ears  could  be  forced  to  listen  to,  the  most  ter- 
rible out  of  hell  were  those  pitiable  cries,  in  the 
solemn  silence  of  the  midnight,  from  the  lonely  hill 
where  crucified  men  were  hanging  in  agonies  out 
of  which  they  could  not  even  die  while  a  breath  to 
suffer  with  remained. 

5.  So  we  see  whence  came  the  suggestion  of  a 
crucifix  as  a  symbol  of  faith  and  patience.  It  is  not 
likely  that  the  physical  pains  of  our  Lord  were  the 
severest  he  had  to  bear;  but  they  certainly  have 
availed  from  the  earliest  time  to  move  the  hearts  of 
the  simple-minded  common   people.     Nor  is   this 


284  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPEI.. 

all:  there  are  moments  of  deep  spiritual  feeling 
when  even  the  most  cultivated  penitent  will  find  an 
argument  in  the  ''agony  and  the  bloody  sweat"  as 
well  as  in  the  "cross  and  passion"  of  the  divine 
Redeemer.  The  Scriptures  leave  us  often  in  the 
greatest  doubt  and  mystery  as  to  Jesus'  mental  state 
when  he  was  dying;  but  many  passages  dwell  with 
much  particularity  of  detail  upon  his  bodily  dis- 
tress. The  very  appearance  of  hideous  emaciation 
that  would  follow  from  the  strained  position  of  the 
person  was  predicted  a  thousand  years  before  Jesus 
was  born:  (Psa.  22:14-17).  The  popular  mind  is 
moved  by  such  a  picture;  but  the  mistake  might 
easily  be  made  of  trusting  a  crucifix  in  an  impulse 
of  superstition,  instead  of  Christ  on  a  principle  of 
faith. 

11.  So  much,  then,  as  to  the  manner  of  our 
Lord's  crucifixion;  now  comes  up  for  our  study  a 
far  more  interesting  question  concerning  its  meaning. 

I.  Considered  merely  as  a  matter  of  historic  in- 
cident, the  death  of  Jesus  Christ  is  of  little,  if  any, 
spiritual  value.  Doubtless  there  were  other  execu- 
tions at  Golgotha,  before  and  after  this  one,  equally 
painful  and  equally  iniquitous — for  the  Roman  Gov- 
ernment in  Palestine  was  never  free  from  chars^es 
of  injustice.  We  do  not  care,  however,  to  remem^ 
ber  the  sufferers'  names.  As  a  part  of  the  world's 
annals  Pilate's  behavior  is  nothing  but  one  of  the 
ten  thousand  instances  of  judicial  indecision  and 
popular  fury  which  have  disgraced  our  race.  And 
Christ's  crucifixion  is  but  one  more  wail  of  abused 
humanity,  if  we  contemplate  it  alone. 


the:  scene;  at  calvary.  2S5 

2.  We  must  consider  this  event  as  a  matter  of 
theological  doctrine.     When  history  is  so  moment- 
ous and  so  mysterious  as  this,  we  are  compelled  to 
read  below  the  surface  and  between  the  lines.     The 
death  of  our  Lord  does  not  stand  by  itself.     He  was 
not  crucified  to  meet  any  necessities  of  Pilate's  pro- 
consulship  or  of  the  Roman  Empire  or  the  Jewish 
monarchy.     He  was  ''delivered  by  the  determinate 
counsel  and  foreknowledge  of  God"  in  order  that 
he  should  suffer  precisely  as  he  did:   (Acts  2:23). 
Men  wreaked  their  violent  passions  upon  him,  and 
it  was  by  wicked  and  responsible  hands  he  was  cru- 
cified and  slain.     Messiah  was  "cut  off,  but  not  for 
himself:"  (Dan.  9:26).     The  wisdom  of  God  over- 
ruled the  wrath  of  his  murderers  to  the  divine  glory 
and  the  salvation  of  men.     One  of  the  ancient  com- 
mentators springs  up  almost  out  of  sober  exposition 
into  the  realm  of  song  as  he  exclaims:    ''In  their 
frantic  anger    they   pluck    to   pieces   the   Rose  of 
Sharon;    but   by   so   doing   they  only  display   the 
brilliance  of  every  petal.     In  their  fury  they  break 
a  diamond   into   fragments;    by  which   they  only 
cause  it  to  show  its  genuineness  by  its  sparkling 
splinters.     They  are  anxious  to  tear  from  Imman- 
uel's  head  the  last  remnant  of  a  crown;   but  they 
only  lift  the  veil  from  the  forehead  of  his  majesty!" 
3.  More  than  anything  else  we  must  also  con- 
sider the  crucifixion  of  Jesus  as  a  matter  of  vica- 
rious atonement.     There  is  something  very  fine  in 
the  quiet  simplicity  with  which  one  of  the  apostles 
explained  this  entire  scene  at  Calvary:    "All  have 
sinned."     Christ  died  to  be  "a  propitiation  through 


286  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPKL. 

faith  in  his  blood:"  (Rom.  3:23-26.)  Pilate  wrote 
an  inscription  to  put  over  the  head  of  the  Saviour; 
according  to  a  Roman  custom,  this  was  designed  to 
explain  the  transaction  to  all  who  stood  by.  But 
though  he  printed  it  broadly  in  three  languages,  he 
did  not  reach  the  real  meaning  in  so  much  as  one 
of  them.  The  true  inscription  on  the  cross  would 
be,  "Jesus  Christ  came  into  the  world  to  save  sin- 
ners." These  are  the  words  which  would  give  the 
scene  at  Calvary  its  eternal  interpretation  before 
the  church  and  the  ages.  The  very  voice  of  Im- 
manuel  himself,  as  he  seems  to  speak  out  of  the 
midst  of  his  suffering,  is:  "See!  I  have  taken 
away  the  handwriting  that  was  against  you  and 
have  nailed  it  to  my  cross."  (Col.  2:13,  14).  The 
one  word  which  describes  the  w^hole  gospel  plan  of 
salvation  is  substitution.  Christ  was  sinless,  yet  he 
suffered:  we  are  sinful,  yet  we  go  free. 

4.  This  will  lead  at  last  to  our  consideration  of 
the  crucifixion  as  a  matter  of  personal  experience. 
Believers  all  glory  in  the  cross.  Many  a  deathbed 
has  been  illumined  by  its  light.  Many  a  sorrowful 
and  lonely  heart  has  been  encouraged  by  the  remem- 
brance of  it.  There  have  been  old  men,  just  trem- 
bling on  the  verge  of  the  tomb,  whose  eyes  filled 
with  the  tears  of  grateful  gladness  as  they  died 
thinking  of  it.  There  have  arisen  voices  from 
around  the  stake  in  the  midst  of  the  martyr's 
flames,  singing  praises  to  Him  who  hung  upon  it. 
Many  a  bowed  sinner  has  come  forth  into  freedom 
as  he  laid  his  burden  at  the  foot  of  the  cross. 

This  personal  experience  begins  with  self-renun- 


the:  scene   at  CAI.VARY.  287 

elation.  Every  other  reliance  must  absolutely  be 
surrendered  and  each  soul  must  become  content  to 
owe  its  salvation  to  Jesus  Christ's  merits,  not  to  its 
own.  Such  humility  as  this  requires  is  not  always 
reached.  Missionaries  tell  us  there  is  a  ceremony 
in  Japan,  even  at  this  day,  in  which  the  cross  of 
the  Christian  faith  is  annually  brought  out  before 
the  people  and  thrown  on  the  pavement  in  the  pub- 
lic road,  so  that  their  feet  in  passing  must  necessa- 
rily trample  upon  it.  Surely  this  seems  a  senseless 
blasphemy.  But  it  is  hardly  beyond  the  spiteful- 
ness  of  many  who  reject  the  offer  of  a  vicarious 
atonement.  To  those  who  accept  Jesus  for  salva- 
tion the  "offence  of  the  cross  is  ceased." 

Then  this  personal  experience  proceeds  with  the 
penitent  surrender  and  confession  of  guilt.  Every 
soul  recognizes  the  Saviour  as  the  substitute  for 
itself. 

"  'Twas  for  my  sins  my  dearest  Lord  hung  on  the  cursed  tree, 
And  groaned  away  a  dying  Hfe  for  thee,  my  soul,  for  thee !" 

We  feel  intelligently  sure  that  faith  may  lay  its 
hand  on  the  head  of  this  one  Lamb  of  God  that 
taketh  away  the  sins  of  the  world.  Away  with  all 
useless  bullocks  and  goats  and  turtle-doves!  Away 
with  feasts  and  fasts  and  penances,  with  hired 
masses  and  votive  candles  for  prayers!  Away  with 
priestly  intercession  and  drone  of  ritual!  Jesus 
Christ  on  the  cross  is  the  Way,  the  Truth,  and  the 
Life!  All  down  the  ages  the  testimony  comes  that 
men  in  every  station  in  society  and  in  all  conceiva- 
ble circumstances  have  found   at  the  foot  of  the 


288  STUDIES   IN   MARK'S   GOSPEIv. 

cross  what  they  have  found  nowhere  else — -joy  and 
pardon  and  peace.  Types  and  symbols  find  their 
meaning  and  their  explanation  in  Christ  alone. 

So  this  personal  experience  continues  to  the  end 
with  a  deep  solicitude  against  lapsing  into  sin 
again.  When  we  picture  the  scene  at  Calvary  we 
grow  indignant  at  those  who  were  concerned  in  the 
cruelty.  But  what  if  there  had  been  one  there  so 
malignant  as  to  wish  for  a  re-arrest  of  Jesus  after 
the  resurrection,  and  then  for  a  new  crucifixion  on 
the  same  cross !  The  Scripture  gives  warning 
against  apostates;  it  is  impossible,  *'if  they  shall 
fall  away,  to  renew  them  again  unto  repentance, 
seeing  they  crucify  to  themselves  the  Son  of  God 
afresh  and  put  him  to  an  open  shame. '^ 


LESSONS   AT  THE  SEPULCHRE.  289 


XXVIII. 
I.ESSONS  AT  THE  SEPULCHRE. 

"Ye  seek  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  which  was  crucified.  He  is 
risen;  he  is  not  here.  Behold  the  place  where  they 
LAID  him." — Mark  16:6. 

There  is  in  the  city  of  Jerusalem  an  ancient 
edifice  called  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre. 
Beneath  its  dome,  so  the  garrulous  guardians  will 
tell  you,  is  the  exact  site  of  that  tomb  in  which  our 
Saviour  was  laid.  Indeed,  they  will  show  you  a 
structure  of  stone  which  they  assert  is  the  hewn 
rock  prepared  by  Joseph  of  Arimathaea  for  his  own 
burial,  but  given  on  the  eventful  evening  of  the 
crucifixion  day  as  a  receptacle  for  the  body  of  Jesus. 

For  fifteen  hundred  years  the  tradition  has  been 
preserved.  The  great  body  of  Eastern  Christians 
even  now  accept  it  as  trustworthy.  Many,  how- 
ever, of  cooler  judgment,  have  been  led  to  question 
the  accuracy  of  very  much  of  Oriental  topography, 
and  entertain  small  respect  for  pretty  nearly  all  the 
Palestine  shrines.  There  is  suspicion  that  this  spot 
has  fixed  itself  in  the  popular  mind  quite  as  effectu-' 
ally  through  mere  assertion,  which  is  all  the  bolder 
because  of  the  lucrative  income,  as  through  any 
logic  of  argument  or  record  of  history.  The  discus- 
sions have  grown  intricate  and  sometimes  waxed 
even  violent.  In  proportion  to  the  want  of  any 
real   information  have   so-called    scholars   seemed 

Stiulie*  III  M  irU-.»  Gohii.I.  j  -i 


290  STUDIES   IN    mark's  GOSPEL. 

willing  to  press  to  unwarrantable  extremes  the  con- 
jectures they  at  first  only  hazarded.  Pride  of  indi- 
vidual opinions  has  acted  in  some  cases  disastrously. 
And  perhaps  there  is  no  spectacle  more  humiliating 
to  be  seen  in  all  Christendom  than  the  actual  hand- 
and-foot  conflicts  between  the  rival  sects  on  each 
Easter  day  as  they  fight  fi^r  precedence  in  ceremo- 
nial within  those  old  walls,  while  outside,  all  over 
the  world,  with  equal  animosity  and  bitterness,  dis- 
putants who  rule  the  schools  contend  as  to  whether 
the  sepulchre  was  ever  in  that  neighborhood  at  all. 
One  cannot  help  being  grateful  over  the  mystery; 
for  if  such  profane  folly  is  wrought  because  of  an 
imaginary  locality,  what  might  be  feared  in  case 
there  should  be  a  discovery  of  the  true! 

Thus  much  seems  credible:  there  was  once  a 
structure  in  this  part  of  the  city,  of  what  sort  does 
not  appear,  afterwards  destroyed.  The  Roman  em- 
peror Hadrian  erected  upon  its  ruins  a  temple  for 
the  worship,  of  the  heathen  goddess  Venus.  That 
in  turn  crumbled  away,  and  upon  its  foundations 
the  Emperor  Constantine  built  a  Christian  church. 
As  to  the  one  question,  however,  whether  the  sep- 
ulchre of  Jesus  was  in  the  rock  underneath  each  of 
these  edifices  all  the  while,  nobody  can  furnish  or 
find  any  positive  proof.  Most  of  the  prelatical  wri- 
ters, high  in  ecclesiastical  reverence,  think  they  may 
implicitly  trust  the  statement  of  Mother  Church. 
Many  of  the  evangelical  and  Protestant  writers  sim- 
ply reject  the  tradition  as  being  unimportant  and 
unauthentic,  and  declare  that  the  exact  place  where 
Christ  was  laid  cannot   now,    and  will  never,   be 


I^ESSONS  AT  THE  SEPULCHRE.  291 

known.  In  repeating  the  invitation  of  the  text, 
*' Behold  the  place  where  they  laid  him,"  I  have 
no  purpose  in  mind,  therefore,  to  lead  you  into. curi- 
ous inquiries  concerning  the  mere  form,  locality,  or 
history  of  Joseph's  garden  or  the  stone  chamber 
generously  opened  for  the  deposit  of  Jesus'  remains. 
The  lines  of  that  inclosure  are  certainly  obliterated 
now  and  the  grave  is  no  more. 

But  the  imagination  will  do  all  needed  service 
in  reproducing,  as  far  as  is  necessary  for  any  legiti- 
mate end,  the  august  spectacle  which  alone  illu- 
mines the  spot.  That  tomb  was  the  local  link 
between  the  humiliation  and  the  exaltation  of  our 
divine  Lord.  The  turning  moment  of  his  history 
was  passed  in  the  dark  inclosure  of  what  we  call  a 
grave.  No  human  grave,  however,  was  ever  like 
that  before,  but  every  Christian  grave  has  been  like 
that  since.  And  he  who  will  come  now  and  see 
where  the  Lord  lay,  may  see  with  hopeful  and 
happy  eyes  the  place  where  each  one  is  going  to 
lie  who  sleeps  in  Jesus. 

For  the  Scriptural  narrative  labors  to  be  clear 
upon  two  points,  not  one  only.  It  is  interesting  to 
notice  how  the  inspired  writers  reverse  our  usual 
conceptions  of  the  close  of  human  life.  We  are 
wont  to  expatiate  little  upon  a  man's  future  as  he 
draws  his  final  breath.  We  dwell  almost  morbidly 
upon  his  failing  powers  and  lonesome  departure. 
But  we  are  sure  to  hurry  into  conspicuousness  and 
show  almost  at  once  thereafter.  We  hush  up  dec- 
orously the  details  of  death,  and  reserve  our  parade 
for  funerals. 


292  STUDIES    IN   mark's   GOSPKU 

But  the  sacred  record  concerning  the  Lord  Jesus 
is  found  to  glance  briefly  upon  the  circumstances 
of  his  burial;  it  continues  its  wonderful  minute- 
ness of  description  up  to  the  last  word,  and  then 
resumes  the  particulars  the  moment  he  rises  again. 
That  is  to  say,  the  stress  of  the  history  rests  upon 
proving,  first,  that  he  truly  died,  and  next,  that  he 
really  rose  again  upon  the  third  day.  So  that 
when  xDne  comes  to  see  the  place  where  the  I^ord 
lay,  he  looks  upon  a  grave  with  two  openings — one 
through  which  a  human  being  entered;  the  other 
which  he  broke  as  he  left,  and  which  remains  un- 
closed, lience  we  learn  at  such  a  spot  the  lesson 
which  entirely  revolutionizes  the  ordinary  processes 
of  thought.  No  event  in  the  history  of  our  race  is 
so  fraught  with  meaning  to  upset  traditions,  imagi- 
nations, customs,  as  this  of  the  resurrection  of  our 
IvOrd  Jesus  Christ. 

We  find  in  the  Word  of  God  two  representations 
of  this  period  of  human  existence  that  seem  to  be 
in  many  respects  contradictory.  The  pne  declares 
life  to  be  a  mere  delusion,  a  valueless  vanity  and 
vexation.  The  other  says  life  is  an  infinitely  pre- 
cious possession  to  us  all.  There  was  nothing  for 
which  the  ancient  people  of  God  were  taught  to 
pray  more  earnestly  than  for  length  of  days.  In- 
deed, the  pledge  of  this  was  what  made  welcome 
"  the  first  commandment  with  promise."  And  yet 
Moses,  the  great  Hebrew  lawgiver,  expressed  the 
utter  contempt  of  a  disgusted  heart  when  he  sang 
in  his  Psalm,  "We  spend  our  years  as  a  tale  that  is 
told."      No  reward  offered  under  the  gospel  is  so 


LKSSONS   AT  THE   SEPULCHRE.  293 

princely  and  so  priceless  as  the  promise  of  life. 
Yet  the  soberest  of  all  the  apostles  warns  us  that 
our  life  is  ''only  as  a  vapor  that  appeareth  for  a  lit- 
tle time  and  then  vanlsheth  away. ' '  If  there  be  any 
confusion  or  antagonism  in  these  estimates  It  must 
be  grounded  just  here.  We  judge  of  our  life  ac- 
cording to  the  point  from  which  we  view  it.  We 
prize  it  when  we  remember  we  are  to  part  with  it 
so  soon.  We  despise  it  when  we  remember  we  must 
part  with  it  so  cci'tainly.  And  there  will  always  be 
this  contradictlveness  of  sentiment  in  the  mind  of 
any  person  who  does  not  tone  it  with  the  grand 
conviction  of  an  intelligent  hereafter. 

It  is  true  none  of  us  are  wlllinor  to  submit  to  the 
inevitable  necessity  of  dying  either  timidly  or 
tamely.  We  call  our  tremendous  foe  by  bad  names, 
and  then  we  confront  him  as  bravely  as  we  can.  In 
one  notable  instance,  at  least,  has  even  the  father  of 
lies  told  the  truth:  "Skin  for  skin,  yea,  all  that  a 
man  hath  will  he  give  for  his  life."  It  would  al- 
most seem  true  that  Death  has  in  some  instances 
been  thwarted  for  a  season  by  human  courage  and 
will.  It  is  possible  to  ward  off  fatal  disease  for  a 
time,  and  so  redeem  a  few  years  more  from  the 
power  of  the  grave.  But  such  an  effort  never  ends 
in  any  permanent  triumph.  All  the  world  learned 
that  long  ago.  Even  the  ancient  my  thologlst  erected 
no  temple  to  Death.  No  sacrifices  were  ever  to  be 
brought  to  Mors.  He  was  understood  as  gathering 
his  own  victims  at  his  own  will.  They  considered 
him  "a  grim  monster,"  inexorable  to  all  entreaty 
and  deaf  to  all  prayers. 


294  STUDIES   IN   mark's   GOSPEL. 

And  so  far  the  heathen  were  right.  Neither 
force  nor  propitiation  can  deliver  ns  from  the  shadow 
Death  sends  creeping  on  towards  our  feet.  But 
surely  we  do  not  need  to  keep  thinking  of  it!  Any- 
body will  be  public  benefactor  enough  to  stop  tolling 
the  bell!  We  shrink  back  with  a  kind  of  violent 
instinct  from  that  horrible  iteration  which,  as  we 
read,  a  certain  monarch  commanded;  a  herald  was 
to  enter  his  apartment  each  morning,  saying,  *' Re- 
member, O  king,  thou  art  mortal!"  We  know  this 
is  true;  but  we  can  refuse  to  be  told  of  it.  Two 
feeble  little  ingenuities  of  our  own  invention  we  are 
wont  to  practice,  just  to  cover  up  the  sight  we 
mean  not  to  see. 

One  of  them  is  a  mere  effort  to  render  death  less 
displeasing  in  its  external  forms.  We  choose  the 
most  exquisite  spots  for  our  places  of  burial.  We 
plant  them  with  rarest  and  fairest  flowers.  We 
adorn  them  with  statuary,  shining  white  among  the 
trees,  and  with  fountains  playing  in  the  willowy 
vistas.  We  chase  coffins  with  silver  and  crown 
hearses  with  plumes.  But  this  ends  only  in  folly. 
Nobody  grows  any  more  willing  to  die  for  thinking 
of  the  fine  funeral.  Nor  indeed  are  the  footfalls  of 
Death  any  softer  for  all  the  richness  of  the  carpet 
along  which  he  comes.  His  knock  at  the  portal  is 
no  gentler  for  all  that  he  covers  his  skeleton  hand 
with  the  folds  of  black  velvet. 

So  we  try  again.  We  cannot  ward  off,  but  we 
can  cover  up.  We  cunningly  insist  that  we  can 
thwart  the  malice,  if  not  the  power,  of  that  advan- 
cing doom  which  warns  us  as  it  nears  us.     We 


LESSONS   AT  THE   SEPULCHRE.  295 

cannot  stop  the  nearing;  we  can  stop  the  warning. 
We  cannot  stay  the  nightfall  ;  but  we  can  silence 
the  clock.  If  Death  comes,  he  shall  be  made  to 
come  stealthily.  So  we  announce  it  ungenteel  and 
against  good-breeding  to  speak  of  any  one's  grow- 
ing old.  With  all  passionateness  of  attachment  we 
will  cling  to  every  shred  of  our  lives.  There  was 
terrible  irony,  whether  he  intended  it  or  not,  in 
those  words  of  our  Lord,  *'Let  the  dead  bury  their 
dead."  That  is  what  we  are  all  doing.  It  has  been 
the  prominent  occupation  of  the  busy  generations 
one  by  one.  Yet  we  wise,  shifty  people  propose 
definitely  that  we  will  keep  in  ignorance  of  what 
the  whole  world  around  us  is  at! 

Now  it  is  well  to  question  at  this  point  with 
careful  analysis  such  a  feeling  of  repugnance  and 
recoil.  Why  are  we  so  subject  to  bondage  through 
fear  of  death?  It  cannot  be  the  apprehension  of 
mere  physical  pain  at  the  moment  of  departure. 
We  are  assured  by  those  of  widest  observation  and 
wisest  skill  that  the  pangs  of  dying  are  rarely 
severe.  Nature  makes  kind  provision  for  these 
final  hours,  and  frequently  they  are  the  most  posi- 
tively painless  the  sufferer  has  known  for  days  and 
years.  Not  unlikely  many  of  us  here  have  endured 
already  more  than  yet  remains  for  us  to  meet  when 
we  come  to  die.  Rather  do  our  agitations  seem  to 
rise  from  a  vague,  undefined  anxiety  concerning 
what  lies  beyond  death.  And  if  that  could  just  be 
relieved,  most  of  us  would  listen  to  the  summons 
heroically,  and  some  would  bid  it  cheerful  welcome. 

Hence  one  of  the  most  hopeful,  helpful  verses  in 


296  STUDIES   IN    mark's   GOSPEL. 

the  Bible  is  tliat  in  wlilcli  we  are  told  that  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  came  to  this  world  in  human, 
mortal  form,  that  he  might  become  the  avowed  and 
eternal  antagonist  of  the  destroyer:  "  Forasmuch 
as  the  children  are  partakers  of  flesh  and  blood,  he 
also  himself  likewise  took  part  of  the  same;  that 
through  death  he  might  destroy  him  that  had  the 
power  of  death,  that  is,  the  devil,  and  deliver  them 
who  through  fear  of  death  were  all  their  lifetime 
subject  to  bondage." 

When  Jesus  died  upon  the  cross  all  nature 
shuddered.  An  exultant  earthquake  held  revel 
among  the  rending  rocks.  Hell  was  jubilant  with 
victory. .  Satan  had  delight  in  seeing  the  heavens 
darkened.  For  the  three  predicted  days  his  realm 
was  in  the  ecstasy  of  triumph.  His  enemy  slept 
heavily  in  the  hewn  rock  of  the  Arimathaean.  And 
we  are  ready  to  admit,  if  there  had  been  no  first 
Baster  morning  to  come,  the  wail  of  the  race  could 
never  have  been  hushed. 

But  that  stone  was  eventually  rolled  away  in  the 
dawn  of  the  new  Sabbath.  Forth  came  the  living 
Saviour  from  the  abode  of  the  dead.  And  he  did 
not  come  alone.  Some  other  people  rose  with  him, 
came  out  of  their  graves,  went  up  into  the  city.  It 
matters  not  who  they  were.  It  was  not  the  fact 
that  a  few  nameless  old  persons  had  escaped  which 
took  the  alarm  to  hell.  A  stupendous  announce- 
ment preceded  that:  TiiE  lyORD  had  risen  in- 
deed! He  broke  the  bars  of  that  awful  prison- 
house.  Nay,  more;  he  rent  them  away  with  him; 
he  bore  the  gates  off  from  the  hinges;  he  left  the 


LESSONS   AT   THE   SKPUl^CHRE.  297 

grave  wltli  the  wall  all  prostrate  on  tlie  farther 
side! 

And  since  then  there  has  been  no  death  such  as 
it  used  to  be.  "What  seems  so  is  iransitio7ty  The 
Nazarene's  last  wonder  on  the  earth  was  his  great- 
est. Come,  then,  "see  the  place  where  the  Lord 
lay."  It  is  not  so  frightful  a  place  after  all.  Peni- 
tence at  the  cross,  a  true  hope  of  pardon,  faith  in 
the  atonement,  these  can  calm  every  human  heart 
and  remove  all  its  wild  alarms.  Death  is  at  last 
swallowed  up  in  victory! 

The  practical  reach  and  profit  of  this  fresh  reve- 
lation concerning  another  world  is  almost  beyond 
estimate.  It  relieves  our  intolerable  dread,  when 
any  little  distemper  arouses  a  pain,  when  some 
muscle  or  nerve  seems  reluctant  in  its  function  and 
gives  us  premonition  of  infirmity.  It  soothes  our 
hearts  in  bereavement;  for  the  parted  and  the  pure 
shall  meet  again.  Them  that  sleep  in  Jesus  he  will 
bring  with  him  when  he  comes.  Immortality  seems 
so  real,  earth  seems  so  little  and  so  low,  trials  seem 
so  insignificant,  for  heaven  is  at  hand. 

There  are  thoughtful  moments  which  come  to 
most  men  and  women  who  have  arrived  at  middle 
life  or  gone  beyond  it,  when  serious  counsel  presses 
them.  The  restless  ambitions  of  their  earlier  years 
have  pretty  much  run  their  course  and  ceased  to  be 
motive  powers.  Slowly  and  pensively  they  have 
watched  the  companions  of  their  youth  dropping 
away.  Their  views  of  men,  manners,  measures 
have  become  modified  much.  They  live  now  in 
their   children.     That   moment   in  which   they  re- 


298  STUDIES   IN   mark's  GOSPEI*. 

hearse  the  past  with  some  dear  old  lingering  friend 
is  full  of  sweetness  and  charity.  On  the  whole, 
however,  they  look  forward.  There  yet  seems  room 
for  generous  purpose;  a  few  noble  ends  remain  to 
be  served;  there  is  hope  of  a  measure  of  modest 
usefulness;  there  can  be  counsels  offered,  prayers 
lifted — by  God's  blessing,  souls  saved. 

But  in  the  distance  the  trees  which  line  our 
ordinary  pathways  in  the  journey  appear  more 
beautiful  with  autumn  leaves  than  with  spring  blos- 
soms. Nor  are  the  landscapes  any  the  less  lovely 
because  they  happen  to  be  russet  and  brown,  for 
the  fruits  are  coming  in.  Such  people  ought  al- 
ways to  be  Christian  believers.  When  we  see  the 
events  and  the  years  flitting  by  us  there  is  noth- 
ing for  any  one  to  say  but  this,  and  fine  it  is  to 
say  it,  *'For  we  know  that  if  our  earthly  house  of 
this  tabernacle  were  dissolved,  we  have  a  building 
of  God,  a  house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in 
the  heavens." 

There  is  no  alarm  in  fading  graces  or  failing 
strength,  nor  even  any  night  in  the  grave,  provided 
we  can  see  the  luminous  dawn  of  the  resurrection 
beyond  it.  Let  the  index-finger  of  our  faith  point 
forward.  There  is  left  us  this:  we  can  do  good  a 
little  while  longer;  w^e  can  grow  better  and  purer; 
then,^when  God  will,  w^e  can  go  home. 

And  when  that  solemn  hush  of  dissolution 
comes  there  is  a  beloved  Presence  near  by  and  a 
helping  hand  to  lay  hold  of  ours.  Then  a  Christian 
quotes  the  wonderful  engagements  of  a  covenant- 
keeping  God.    He  murmurs  to  himself  as  his  pulses 


LESSONS  AT  THE   SEPULCHRE.  299 

beat  low,  "As  for  me,  I  will  behold  tliy  face  in 
righteousness;  I  shall  be  satisfied,  when  I  awake 
with  thy  likeness."     And  so  he  sings: 

When  my  last  hour  is  close  at  hand, 

My  last  sad  journey  taken, 
Do  thou,  Lord  Jesus  !  by  me  stand ; 

Let  me  not  be  forsaken. 

0  Lord  !  my  spirit  I  resign 
Into  thy  loving  hands  divine  ; 

'Tis  safe  within  thy  keeping. 

1  shall  not  in  the  grave  remain, 

Since  thou  death's  bonds  hast  severed  : 
By  hope  -with  thee  to  rise  again 

From  fear  of  death  delivered, 
I  '11  come  to  thee,  where'er  thou  art, 
Live  with  thee,  from  thee  never  part ; 

Therefore  I  die  in  rapture. 

And  so  to  Jesus  Christ  I  'II  go. 

My  longing  arms  extending  ; 
So  fall  asleep,  in  slumber  deep. 

Slumber  that  knows  no  ending, 
Till  Jesus  Christ,  God's  only  Son, 
Opens  the  gates  of  bliss,  leads  on 

To  heaven,  to  life  eternal. 


STUDIES  IN  MARK'S  GOSPEL. 

BY  REV.  as.  BOBIKSON,  D.  B. 

The  author  does  not  follow  the  beaten  track  of  commenta- 
tors, but  presents  in  his  own  happy  manner  new  phases  and 
fresh  illustrations  of  the  sacred  narrative,  by  which  the  reader 
finds  himself  instructed  and  enriched. 

These  "  Studies  "  follow  the  course  from  week  to  week  of 
the  Sunday-school  lessons  for  the  first  half  of  1889,  and  will  be 
found  useful  to  teachers. 

i2mo.    300  pp.     Cloth,  $1  25.     Paper,  50  cts. 


OTHER  WORKS 

BY  REV.  C.  S.  ROBINSON,  D.  D. 

STUDIES  OP  NEGIvKCTED  TEXTS. 

"The  volume  contains  twenty-nine  excellent  sermons, 
fresh,  stimulating,  and  thoroughly  practical — sermons  that  will 
be  read,  relished,  and  leave  lasting  impressions." — National 
Baptist. 

**  Written  in  a  plain,  direct  style.  We  would  like  to  single 
out  some  of  the  sermons  for  special  mention,  but  the  whole 
collection  is  valuable." — Presbyterian  Journal. 

"Clear,  earnest,  forcible,  and  impressive.  They  are  pecu- 
liar in  that  they  are  founded  upon  passages  of  Scripture  seldom 
chosen  for  the  pulpit." — Southwestern  Christian  Advocate. 
i2mo.    329  pp.     Cloth,  $1  25. 

STUDIES  IN  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT. 

Homiletic    expositions,    with    illustrations    of  consecutive 
passages  in  the  Gospels,  the  Epistles,  and  the  Apocalypse. 
i2mo.    316  pp.     Cloth,  ^i  25. 

CHURCH  WORK. 

A  half  year's  practical  sermons  in  the  Memorial  Church, 
New  York  city. 

i2mo.    319  pp.     Cloth,  $1  25. 

BETHEL  AND  PENUEL. 

srmons  founded  on  incidents  ( 

\. 

i2mo.     317  pp.    Cloth,  $1  25. 


Sermons  founded  on  incidents  of  Jacob's  life  in  Bethel  and 
Penuel. 


AMERICAN  TRACT  SOCIETY, 

150  NASSAU  STREET,  NEW  YORK. 


Date  Due 

kp  10  39 

. 

r— iii,,_ 

■ '' 

tt^ 

WSM^ 

mm 

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